


Enter Green

by Captain_Hazard



Series: PR 2017 [1]
Category: Power Rangers, Power Rangers (2017)
Genre: Because people swear dammit, F/F, F/M, Gen, Lots of it, Mentions of Underage Sex, So much cliches and references its ridiculous, Sorry if that's not your thing, Swearing, Tattoos, Tommy's a dude in this one, Will probably be that way for awhile, Work In Progress, i'm not sure
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-30
Updated: 2018-10-17
Packaged: 2018-10-25 17:32:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Underage
Chapters: 15
Words: 32,596
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10769073
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Captain_Hazard/pseuds/Captain_Hazard
Summary: Tommy's world is turned upside down when a green rock comes into his life and changes his destiny.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So instead of doing my Got fics, I decided to write this one because I enjoyed the hell out of the new movie. I genuinely hope that it gets a sequel and that the character of Tommy is just as cool as it was in the old days. Whether it is played by a guy or a girl or a Trans actor, it makes no difference to me, I just want the character to be good.
> 
> Now saying that, I decided to be a boring bastard and make Tommy a guy in this story. Sorry about that, but I am ill equipped to write Tommy as a girl or even Trans, mainly because I know that as a straight man, I will fuck it up. More so than what I am going to do with canon of this world and the OG series.
> 
> Hopefully it is different enough and interesting enough that you enjoy it. If not, valid and constructive criticisms are welcome. If you can't provide any of that, don't bother writing a comment.

Tommy was probably going to get even more detention at this point, but he'd rather get more than have Gregory Mercer's goons show up and embarrass him. Or be the reason that he went to jail though that still might happen if they did something stupid besides text him when they shouldn't.

Like the dumb asses they were, they were sat in the parking lot on their shared bike, blaring loud music from one of those old boom boxes they stole from a swap meet. Tommy shook his head in irritation, his hoodie flapping loosely against his face. He picked up a decent sized rock and chucked it in their direction. He didn't aim for one of their heads but maybe he should have.

They were so distracted by the music that they jumped when the rock knocked over their boom box, sending it crashing to the ground. The one sitting in the side car looked around angrily for a moment before the driver smack his shoulder and pointed at Tommy.

“Hey what's the big idea?!” The passenger yelled before he received a smack from the thick fist of his companion. “Ow Bulk what was that for?!” He demanded, rubbing the back of his head.

“You idiot, we're supposed to be incognito!”

“Little too late for that Farkas,” Tommy bit out before glaring at the other dummy in font of him. “And could you speak any louder, Eugene? I don't think they heard you all the way in Turtle Cove.”

“Bite me, pretty boy.” Both of them scowled but it was Skull who had said it.

“You two morons know that I can't talk when I'm at school, that includes detention. So why are you here?”

“Boss wants you working tomorrow night. The usual shift.” Bulk lets out a grunt, pulling out a brown bag from his leather jacket. He tosses it to Tommy who catches it with a slight grimace. The bag is greasy and he can practically see right through it because of that fact.

“Eh Bulk I think you gave him your snack,” Skulls comment makes Bulk flush bright red. He slaps Skull in the head before he growls out unintelligible drivel while holding out his hand. Tommy assumes he wants his food back and he's happy to oblige him if only to feel less greasy than he does now.

Skull lets out a whine as he rubs his head while Bulk digs through his other pocket and retrieves another bag. When Tommy catches this one he's glad that it lacks any grease though he doesn't open it to know what it is, he just slips it into his pocket. Skull seemed to rally then.

“I should dock your ass for the boom box, but since I'm feeling generous, I'll let you keep your advance intact.”

Tommy rolls his eyes, “Its not as if you paid for the damn thing anyway. So who am I fighting tomorrow?” He asks Bulk who had the most brain cells between the two and would probably remember at least some the information their employer gave them.

“Some shit head from Amber Beach. Boss man also wants you to take the fall in the fifth round if you can manage it.”

Tommy's done that before and as much as he hates doing it, he gets a bigger cut of the money that's made so he swallows his pride and just goes with it. And thankfully the school would be closed for the next couple of days since the fridges were going haywire due to several power outages. The food they were supposed to serve had no doubt spoiled and had to be removed.

The food wasn't really the problem since the students could bring lunch from home or starve or steal if they couldn't. But the work that would have to go into fixing the breakers would take a while and it would be 'distracting' for the students if the lights kept going on and off.

“And try not to fuck him up too much like you did the Smitty kid,” He tenses at Skull's sneering words. What happened to Smitty was unfortunate but anyone who stepped into the ring and fought knew the risks. And Tommy felt horrible about it and made payments to the guys medical bills when he could.

“At least Smitty had the balls to face me in a fight you little bitch,” He snarled back. “I'll see you assholes tomorrow, don't text me before then.”

He's so mad that he barely hears them peel out of the parking lot, shouting at him and just being dicks like usual. He sees someone standing on the roof staring down at him and he picks up the pace in getting to his destination whilst pulling his hoodie further over his face. Hopefully that person didn't get a good look at his face.

* * *

 

Mr Johnson wasn't in when Tommy came back and no one was really paying attention so he just went back to his seat. He eyed a high flying not that sailed across the room and into the waiting hand of former it chick Kimberly Hart. Notes being passed or thrown around wasn't anything new but he wondered at the technique they used. He would ask about that later.

“That burrito didn't agree with you huh?” Hayley asks with a knowing smile as he sits down.

When he came back to Angel Grove after being gone for so long he was glad to know that Hayley never forgot about him. Sure the town was hardly big enough to have something to distract from any fond or annoying memories – semi-recent events excluded – but Tommy was touched none the less.

“Something like that,” Tommy can't quite smile back and Hayley starts to lose hers.

“When?”

“Tomorrow.” There's no point in lying to his best friend, especially since he'll need her help. “Can you watch the house?” Translation, can you watch my kid and patch me up after I'm done?

“Sure,” She replied nonchalantly though he caught the worried tone that she always had when he had to fight. “Do you mind if I bring some soup with me? My mom made a fresh batch.” Will you need real pain killers or just bandages and ice?

“Bring me some if you can, I love your moms soup.” Get whatever you can because I have no idea how fucked I am.


	2. Chapter 2

Tommy is wiping off the makeup he had put on to cover his neck tattoo when his pride and joy slams into his leg.

“Got you!”

“What game are we playing now huh?” He asks his baby girl who grins.

“Tag!” What fun he thought dryly though he smiled all the same.

“Well shouldn't you be running then?” He raises an eyebrow at her and she squeals as she starts to book it out of his room.

He sighs then, glad that shes almost back to her normal self after all the moving they had to do. He was grateful that his uncle had let them use his house here, and was even willing to let him have it after he was done with school. Of course, Tommy did have to pay for rent, but thankfully his uncle never asked where he got the money from. Nor did he bring up what happened with his parents.

He clenched his jaw and continued to clean his neck, revealing the head of the tribal falcon he had gotten to cover up some of the scars he had so he could have some peace of mind. He hated having to cover it up, but the schools policy was clear: No Visible Tattoos. No gloves either, but Tommy got a waver for the one he wore on his right hand.

Of course, it was only after he agreed to serve detention for wearing contraband for the allotted time of two Saturdays at the end of every month until he officially left the school.

He almost got three weeks when he argued his case to the principal. Okay, maybe he shouldn't have implied the man was a perv who liked seeing young girls in short skirts, (especially after he saw a wedding picture of the man and his husband ) but Tommy was self conscious of the scars on his body. He figured that it was a small price to pay instead of dealing with those that would gawk and question.

Sure his neck, right shoulder blade and the back of his right hand were the most visible, but they were easily hidden. Plus he remembers who gave them to him -quite vividly, in fact- and he doesn't want to explain that to the shit heads that populate Angel Grove High.

He scowled at the thought.

He shakes his head to clear it and he could hear his daughter talking to someone but not hearing the reply.

“...daddy's home mama. Do you wanna talk to him?”

He threw the rag in the sink, and started to make his way out of the room just as his daughter started running down the hall, bright orange phone firmly pressed to her ear.

“Its mama!” She cheered and he smiled.

“Oh yeah?” He asked, pretending to not have heard her from before. “Let me talk to her.” He held out his hand, smiling still as his daughter said a small good bye to her mother and handed him the phone.

“I'm gonna watch a movie!” She exclaimed before running off and he chuckled slightly.

“Make sure its not one of the scary ones okay Lizzie? Maybe one of those dragon movies you like so much.”

“Kay!” Was all she said as she rounded the corner.

Tommy looked down at the phone and pressed it to his ear, “Katherine,” He greeted the person on the other end and making his way towards the back porch.

“Thomas,” He heard the smile in her voice as she said his name.

“Not that I'm complaining but to what do we owe the pleasure of this call?” He opened the sliding door and stepped onto the back porch. The sun wasn't down yet but it was getting colder so hopefully this didn't take too long.

“I wanted to check in on Elizabeth,” Tommy rolled his eyes fondly while closing the door behind him. Kat was always particular about a persons name and hardly liked using nicknames. She let hers slide sometimes but not always, and she sometimes would politely correct people about it. He thought it was one of her more irritating qualities though she didn't have much so that was something.

“Well you heard her yourself. I think she's got a little too much energy for a three year old but I wouldn't have her any other way.”

“Neither would I,” There was a tone in her voice that didn't sit right with him but he let her talk. “And that's why I want to meet her face to face.”

“Kat, I am not bringing our daughter to that death trap of a country,” He rolled his eyes again but in exasperation. “We've already had this discussion.”

“I know that, which is why I'm coming there.”

Tommy blinked, “Say that again.”

“I am coming to Angel Grove,” She replied. “And I'll have you know that Australia is a fantastic country and a safe one too.”

“You have spiders the size of puppies and every poisonous animal known to man, I'd hardly call that safe,” He retorted, still baffled at what he had just heard. “And is this just going to be a visit or...?”

A visit he could deal with, it would be simple enough. Anything else would be questionable.

“I actually want to move there or close by,” She said in a small voice, as if she was weary of his response. “Is that alright?”

He wasn't sure if it was or not, “Well its something,” He said, and wanted to slap himself for speaking without thinking. He pressed on, “Honestly it would be great to have you here.”

“But?”

“But nothing, I mean what I said. Lizzie asks about you all the time, even though she knows how to contact you. Having you here would be fantastic.”

“Then why do I get the feeling that you're just saying that?”

He sighed, “I won't lie to you, I am a little afraid of what might happen when you come here.”

“What could possibly happen?”

“Your parents,” And mine, he added to himself as he imagined her flinching at what he said.

She knew about the fighting he did, and while she nearly took Lizzie away from him, he promised her that he never would endanger their daughter, or bring his work home. The fact that he lived in his uncles lakeside home, on private property away from the town, and population helped some. And when she found out his employer didn't know about where he lived, she let it go, but only just.

Right now she could still take Lizzie away from him if she wanted, and in all honesty, a part of him agreed with such a thing. But Lizzie only knew him and Hayley, and she would not react well if a stranger came and took her away, no matter if they were her mother.

“I haven't spoken to my parents in a long time,” Kat replied sharply. “After they gave me an ultimatum for Elizabeth, I told them to fuck off. We had a huge argument and in the end they disowned me. I've been living with some friends from school ever since.”

“Kat,” He muttered, stunned, mostly from the information he received though hearing Kat swear was a new one. “Why didn't you tell me? I would have sent you money to come here sooner.” It had been three years for fucks sake, He thought to himself.

“It was my burden to bear and I needed to finish school. I wasn't sure if my credits would be applicable in the states. Plus, I wasn't doing so well emotionally. I didn't want our daughter to see me like that.”

He felt a spike of indignation on behalf of his daughter.

“But she would have seen you or did you not care?!” He hissed out before he could stop himself. He pinched the bridge of his nose, “I'm sorry, that was shitty of me. I shouldn't have said that.”

“Its fine,” Her tone contradicted her statement and he sighed.

“I'm sorry. Its just – I had to answer her questions about why you weren't here and where you were -”

“Its fine,” She said more softly this time. “You shouldn't have had to go through what you did alone.”

“She's young enough to accept what's going on but if she had been older...” He trailed off. “They really disowned you?” He asks in disbelief. “And what ultimatum did they give you? Me and Lizzie were already gone like we agreed to be.”

“They wanted me to disown her entirely, say she was a mistake or something just as horrible. They said it was so neither you or her could lay claim to the Hillard family fortune.”

“Seriously?” He's incredulous, and more than a little angry at such a notion. “You know what, forget I asked. When are you coming here to Angel Grove?”

“Well, I still have some affairs to settle, but I should be done within the next month or so.”

“Do you need money for the plane or...?” He wasn't going to ask about her affairs since it wasn't his business.

“I have enough money saved up to cover the expenses.”

“Do you wanna stay with us?” He swallowed, waiting to hear her answer.

“Would your uncle let me stay with you two? I would hate for you to get in trouble.”

“He might raise the rent, but it won't be obscene or anything.” He probably won't raise it at all but he might drop hints that we should marry, He thought with some bitterness.

His uncle treated Lizzie far better than Tommy's parents ever did, but he was a little disappointed that Tommy had no plans to marry Kat. He had said something about doing right by her, but Tommy just brushed him off, since neither of them wanted anything more than to raise their daughter as best as they could.

“Does he know who I am?”

“Just your name, he doesn't know what you look like,” He paused briefly to see if she had a response to give. “Is it going to be weird for you? Living with me I mean?”

“Is is going to be weird for you?” She asked back.

“I asked you first.”

She huffed at that, “When we slept together at Devon Bly's party, it was done with the understanding that it was a one time thing. I don't regret Lizzie, and I am grateful that you stepped up to take care of her when I couldn't. But that night is all we will ever have, and no more.”

He sighed in mock sadness, “That's a shame really cause I think you look good naked.”

“Thomas,” She said warningly though he could hear a bit of laughter in her voice.

“I mean it, you look good,” He smiled slightly before he continued seriously. “You gave me a strong and beautiful daughter, for that you will always have a place in my heart. But outside of that, sorry babe, I just don't feel anything more.”

He caught a small sigh of relief through the phone. He was glad that nothing more was expected out of this arrangement but he still had some concerns. He would address them when Kat as he felt that was the more appropriate thing to do for now. Having important conversations that they would no doubt need in the future would be better face to face.

“I have to go,” She spoke up suddenly, gaining his attention. “I still have a lot to do and I have a lot to plan.”

“Alright, just keep me in the loop. Should I tell our daughter about this or should we surprise her?”

“Does she like surprises?”

“Good ones mostly, and I think this would qualify. Its up to you though.”

“Keep it a secret for now,” She decided after a moment. “Since I don't know when I'll be done with what I need to do.”

“Alright,” Tommy nodded. “Is there anything else?”

“Let me say goodbye to her, please?”

“Of course, you don't need to ask.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah, Tommy is a teenage father and Kat is the mother. Such originality huh? I might write a separate story on why Tommy was in Australia of all places but I'm not sure. Sorry about the dialogue and actions of Lizzie, I'm not really good at writing kids. Teenagers, adults, and babies I got on lock but little kids are difficult for me to write well.


	3. Chapter 3

“Alright munchkin, you be good for auntie Hayley okay? Daddy has to go to work with auntie Davina.” She frowns up at him, looking displeased.

“Daddy, I'm a dragon, no munchkin!” She lets out what he assumes is a roar and he tries hard not to laugh since he knew that would hurt her feelings.

“Yeah? Well try not to burn the house down while I'm gone.” He turns to Hayley and gives her a kiss on the cheek. “Thank you for watching her.” He whispered and feels Hayley's arms wrap around his neck in response.

“Come back to us,” Come back to me is what she wants to say, he thinks. Hayley's little crush on him always made him feel like shit since he asked her for favors all the time. He knew in his rational mind that she would have done all those things even if she didn't have a crush on him but he still felt wrong for asking.

“I always do,” His response earns him a scoff that turns into a sigh as he hugs her back. He had already told her that he wasn't really interested in dating – because Lizzie was his priority - and that he would no doubt break her heart if they did. More so than when he told her that he wasn't interested in her romantically.

His sister obnoxiously honks the horn of her car outside and he narrows his eyes, “I gotta go.” He pulls away from Hayley to ruffle his daughters hair. He had to fight to get his hand back since Lizzie had decided to go from a dragon to a monkey and latch onto it. He reveled in her giggles slightly before he pulled himself free and made his way out of the house.

* * *

 

His sister was about to honk the horn again when Tommy came up to the passenger side and threw the door open.

“Were you writing your last will and testament?” Davina said dryly and a little bit testily if his ears weren't deceiving him.

“Yep,” He scowled, climbing in and slamming the door shut. “I was just adding a clause that says you get jack shit, Trueheart.” She seemed hurt by what he said. Not because of her being written out of his none existent will, but because he called her by her chosen name. And for the life of him, he couldn't understand why. If anyone had a right to change their name it was Tommy. People always did a double take when they found out his full name was Thomas Patrick Oliver. Mostly because it was the whitest name in the world and he didn't look white outside of the light grey in his eyes and his Ehu hair.

“Did you get my text on where to go?” He asked after a moment. She had never driven him to a match despite knowing – and disapproving – of them. She had only done so because she said she needed to talk to him.

“You know I did.” She snapped, shifting into first gear and driving off.

“What crawled up your ass?” He demanded, righting himself after dealing with the sudden jerk of the car. “You wanted me here so don't get pissy okay?”

She snarled, “Why haven't you responded to any of moms letters?”

“Because its 2017 and no one writes letters any more?” He rolled his eyes and stared out of the window. “Why is she writing me letters anyway?” He had made it clear that he never wanted to talk to her again. His uncle had always sent her letters back at his request and if one got through then Tommy would just tear it up.

“She wants to talk to you, ass wipe.”

“And I don't want to talk to her. Honestly, this is what you wanted to talk about? And here I thought you wanted to bond as siblings. Or do you not consider me your brother any more?”

She appeared baffled, “What? Of course I do -”

“You and mom left me behind with dad and changed your name so you wouldn't be shamed for being related to him.” He spoke over her bitterly. “Tell me, does that actually work for you or do you still get dirty looks for being the daughter of the town drunk?” Patrick Oliver's behavior was well documented at this point, there was hardly anyone that didn't know about his past antics.

“Mom told you to come with us,” She snapped through gritted teeth. “She knew exactly what dad would be like -”

“And I don't know what he was like?” His head jerked towards her face which had gone red in anger and shame.

“Tommy-”

“No,” He growled when she looked apologetic. “Do not finish that sentence, Davina Michelle. You know damn well that I know what dad is like better than anyone else. Unlike you and mom, I didn't run away. I made sure he didn't burn the house down when he went to sleep with a cigarette in his mouth.”

“I made sure that he didn't wander from home when he started drinking the hard shit. I held him when he cried about the path he was going down. And I had to listen to him promise me and lie to my face about getting better.”

Angry tears flowed down his face and the volume of his voice was rising steadily, “I stayed with him because he was my dad and I loved him. I wasn't going to give up on him, not like you and mom did. Not like the town did when the Mine was closed. And it nearly cost me a lot.” He held up his scarred hand but he knew that she was thinking about the one on his neck, the one that could have so much worse if his dad had a better grip on the knife he used.

“You should have come with us,” She insisted hoarsely, her face wet with tears and she struggled to drive. “That never would have happened to you.”

“Maybe not, or maybe something worse would have happened.” He grunted, wiping at his face. His dad had gone to rehab and had been sober ever since he attacked Tommy. He too had tried to contact Tommy but he was ignored as well.

“To be honest, both mom and dad are on my shit list.”

“Dad, I get,” She said after taking a calming breath. “But mom?”

Tommy just looked out of the window, watching as they passed the property line of his uncles place and entered the main road.

“Tommy, what did mom do?” Tommy said nothing and she hissed out, “I will drive this car around in circles until you tell me.” She threatened. He contemplated the idea of just jumping out of the car but that would no doubt draw attention and most importantly, get him injured which he couldn't afford just yet.

“Don't even think about it,” His sister master locked the doors and he sighed.

“Are you absolutely sure you want to know?” He asked with a scowl.

“I know I haven't always been the best sibling to you,” She said slowly, as if to gauge his reaction. “But I do care about you Tommy. I never stopped caring about you.”

He thought she sounded sincere so with a sigh, he talked, “I came to the Reservation after I got back from Australia. Mom wanted to see me and I went, but I didn't tell her that I was bringing Elizabeth to see her. I thought it would be okay despite my nervousness.”

He scoffed, “I should have never gone but I needed to get my daughter out of the house and away from dad. You wanna know what she called me there for? She called me there to basically say that my daughter was a mistake and that I was a dumb ass for deciding to raise her.”

“You never planned for her and you have no plan on how to raise her,” He added when his sister opened her mouth, no doubt ready to defend their mother. “You can't honestly think that this will end well baby boy. You'll just hurt her and yourself in the process, not that you should have had her to begin with.”

“She said all of that to me while I held my sleeping child. Her granddaughter was right in front of her and she had the nerve to say that shit to my face. If Lizzie wasn't with there, I would have lost it. I just settled with telling her to suck a fat one and walked out of the house.”

“You said that to mom?!” Davina shrieked at him, eyes wide. Her eyes snapped back to the road when she started to veer towards the sidewalk.

“Yes, and it could have been much worse.” He informed her with a bitter smile, righting himself once more.

She pursed her lips but had no follow up question on the subject. Instead, she changed it entirely, “Why couldn't you have gone back to being a Scratcher? You made some good money there and it was just as illegal.” She sounded disapproving as all hell but she also managed to sound supportive somehow.

Tommy bristled and did his best to ignore the conflicting tone, because seriously, what the actual fuck?

“I was not a damn Scratcher!" He snapped, deeply offended that his sister would even lump him in with those scam artists. "My tattoo work was clean and my customers never got infected. I took pride in all of that, even if it was illegal.”

“Then why did you stop?”

“I make more money when I fight,” He admitted with a shrug, and he heard his sister gnash her teeth together. “And I don't get bullshit complaints when I refuse to copy another persons tattoo.”

Good god, the amount of times he was asked to do a complete recreation of the Rock's tattoo was damn near infuriating. Did people not understand that it was made specifically for him and there was a lot of meaning involved in the patterns he got? Between that and the cries of cultural appropriation for his tribal work – which didn't make any fucking sense as it was his culture as well – Tommy had found other avenues to make money with a little less fuss.

His sister pursed her lips even further, “You could always come and work with me as my assistant.”

“No thanks,” His reply was flat and devoid of emotion. He had no love for the idea of working in an office and filing a shit ton of paper work. “I'm sure that you love what you do sis but that was your path and this is mine.”

He hopes that she can become a lawyer like she always wanted. She's smart enough and determined enough to be a powerful force in the field of law, but that's just not him. Tommy's got a little too much of their fathers blood in him to be on the right side of the law.

“It would be the least painful option for you.” She added in another attempt to convince him to change his mind even though he's in too deep.

“I can take care of myself. And if something should happen to me, Lizzie will be taken care of and she will be safe.” He doesn't mean to sound so dismissive, but its his truth and the the one he will live and die by.

His sisters knuckles turned white as she gripped the steering wheel, "Does your life mean so little to you?” Her voice is quiet and flat.

“In comparison to my daughters? Yes, yes it does.” He said softly. “If the price for her safety is my death then its a price that I will pay.”

Thankfully his sister stays silent but everything is so awkward now. And he almost grimaces as he goes over what he says. He sounded like he had a death wish.

* * *

 

He told his sister to drop him off a block away from where he was suppose to go. He said she needed to hightail it out of there before someone saw her. She gave him a hug and told him to be careful. He would have shrugged it off but he felt like he was being watched so he picked up the pace by jogging to his destination.

Yet he still couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was about to happen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is all I have written so far and the power coin will appear in the next chapter. 
> 
> Now Tommy had a brother in the OG series who was named David (And was played by JDF'S actual sibling). Here, David is now Davina. Oh and Ehu hair is basically an islander's way of saying light red hair.
> 
> And never get a tattoo from a Scratcher, no matter how talented they seem. You could get seriously hurt.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Green power coin is here, as was promised.

Melanie Sheer scanned the files of the people in the building Apex had covered. Most of them were lowlifes and nobodies from what she could tell. There were a few people worth giving a second look at like Gregory Mercer for example.

Tech genius, business tycoon, and all around asshole to anyone he didn't like – which was pretty much everyone other than himself. Not even his son Anton was spared from the disdain that his father held for what he considered his lessers.

Again, all around asshole.

Unfortunately for her and her team, he was the kind of asshole that they would have to save if the situation went south. He was a powerful political figure and he made some of the toys they used to spy on him with. He never batted an eye at such a thing because her bosses had practically given him immunity in return for his services. As long as he made their stuff, they wouldn't let the authorities know about his illegal businesses.

Melanie hated the man, but she knew that politics needed to be played or it was game over for your cause. And she very much believed that Earth problems should be handled by the people of Earth, now more than ever given the attack on this town. Gregory Mercer was a boon to their agency, even if he made her want to chew glass and drink bleach.

So whenever she had to be in his presence, she just plastered on a fake smile and swallowed her pride.

“Are the eggheads sure that the energy source is here?” She asked one of the analysts near her.

“Affirmative.” He responded, barely looking up from his work. “The scanners have been going nuts since we got here. I had to mute the noise just to analyze the data that was coming in. My head might have exploded otherwise from the headache I got.”

“Any idea as to what's causing all of this?”

“Not a clue. However, the energy signature is almost an exact match to one we got from those twins.” He gave her a sideways glace. “I can't match it to the findings on the hand we found as well, but if it were here -”

“I was ordered to give to another team for research,” Not a complete lie really but not the whole truth. The tracker she had placed on the container she gave to the Rangers had turned up nothing. She didn't know where they were and they probably wouldn't accept any other olive branch from her or Apex anytime soon in response.

“Bummer,” The analyst shrugged. “Since we followed the signal here we think one of the guest brought it with them. We have physical eyes on each of them outside of the cameras they planted.”

Melanie nodded her head and returned to the screen. Mercer's pet fighter had arrived with little ceremony, as was his way. Tommy Oliver was a good street fighter she supposed but she never gave him much thought. And when she did, she thought he was nothing more than a screw up who would no doubt screw up his daughters life. He did well enough to hide her from his peers but Apex had known about her for sometime now. The agency was very thorough in their collecting of information, and very little could be hidden from them.

“Tell the agents inside that when we get some kind of confirmation, they have my permission to move in,” She said after a moment, turning to anther screen to get a different angle of the area.

“And if we face any resistance?”

“Are we not trained agents of the United States Government?” She asked him rhetorically, eyebrows raised in amusement. “Just make sure the agents in there are ready.”

“Yes ma'am,” He replied and relayed her orders without a second thought.

* * *

 

Tommy gritted his teeth as his opponents hand brushed against the scar he had. Though it had healed since his fathers attack, it was sensitive to a lot of pressure. The giant of a man grinned at his discomfort until Tommy squeezed back and dug his nails into the guys flesh. He scowled at Tommy who bared his teeth in reply.

Next to them, their sponsors were talking shop and around them the eyes of the spectators looked on. Tommy paid them no mind like he usually did as he removed his jacket and then his shirt. The spectators whispered amongst themselves, muttering a sense of appreciation and approval.

His sponsor – or rather, boss – marveled his current rival with tales of Tommy's prowess which the other guy didn't buy. Tommy didn't blame him, the big fucker in front of him had been smashing bricks against his head and was seemingly unaffected outside of a cut here and there. Tommy, as tall and muscular as he was, was small in comparison to this guy.

“Do you have what you promised me?” His boss asked.

“Do you have my money?”

Would you two stop measuring dicks so we can get on with it, Tommy nearly rolled his eyes at the trivial banter but didn't. He started to stretch and roll his body to get loose and ready for what was to come.

His eyes, however, snapped back to his boss when he heard a steel briefcase snap open. A green light emitted from the case and he couldn't help but stare. A strange feeling washed over him...it was almost like an old friend had returned into his life and was asking for help.

Before he could shake himself out of it, the ground burst upward and a large hand was formed before it took a swipe at him.

* * *

 

“All units, move in!” Melanie cried into her walkie talkie and drawing her gun at the same time. She kicked the door of the van open and broke into a run, aiming straight for the building.

* * *

 

Tommy barely dogged the hand which switched targets and struck the guy he was supposed to fight. The guys knee snapped due to the force of the blow and he fell to the ground, screaming in agony. The hand grew into something larger and all around him, parts of the building had started to form into misshapen figures that attacked the spectators.

Tommy reached out towards his boss who seemed startled by it all but the roof above him started to collapse and a piece of it fell between them. His opponents sponsor was crushed by another piece of the roof and the table that was in front of them was destroyed.

The contents of the briefcase rolled towards Tommy and hit his foot, coming to a stop. A coin? He thought, ducking under a swing that would have no doubt taken his head off.

On instinct, he picked up the coin and the second it touched his hand, he felt power surge through his entire being. Green energy swirled around his body and he screamed, sending a shock wave throughout the room and destroying the monsters that were coming to attack him.

Tommy disappeared in a flash of green light just as the building collapsed completely.

* * *

 

Melanie Sheer watched in disbelief as a green light illuminated the area before it disappeared and the building caved in on itself.

“Close off the streets!” She barked out to her remaining men. “And help me get any survivors out of there.” If there are any, She thought with a slight grimace, running to the now destroyed building. If Gregory Mercer was dead, her employers would throw a damn fit. Where did those rock monsters come from? The area was clear and there had been no sightings of them around this part of town.

She hoped that she got answers and soon. Her job was now officially on the line.

* * *

 

Across the town of Angel Grove, seven beings felt and saw the activation of the new Power Ranger.

For the team themselves, they each felt a sense of completion that they hadn't felt before. They were not sure as to how they should respond. Especially since they each started to hear a voice in their head that referred to them as either master or mistress.

Meet at the ship, Was the mass text that Jason Scott sent to his friends before he grabbed a jacket and jumped out his window.

Alpha 5 and Zordon of Eltar watched as a sixth morphing pad appeared before them. Both were surprised an deeply concerned by this development. Had Rita reforged her bond with her coin or had it gone to another?

“I don't care how you do it Alpha, get the rangers here. Immediately.” Of course Zordon knew that they likely felt something by this point and could be on their way. But it was better to be send a message to be sure.

“On it,” Alpha bobbed its head and sprinted across the room to find the drones he and Billy had been working on. They would come in handy now.

* * *

 

Rita felt her bond with her coin start to melt away and a white hot rage filled her heart. No, she thought, gritting her teeth, that coin belongs to me! Her eyes opened and she took in her surroundings.

She was in her outpost on the Earths Moon. It seems her tractor beam was still working. Good. Very good. She closed her eyes and cleared her mind. She sent out a mental probe to reach out to her coin before the connection was lost. She would see just who had usurped her place as the Green Ranger.

When she entered the mind of this new Ranger she grinned.

“Oh this is going to be fun,” She cackled to herself.

* * *

 

At the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, Tor the Shuttlezord came alive for the first time in a long time. It shook off the Ocean floor that covered it and started to drift upwards to the surface. The thoughts of his brothers and sisters came into his mind then.

 _Brother is that you?_ They said in unison and he was overjoyed to hear them once more.

 _Yes it is I_. He responded, increasing the speed of his ascent, not being mindful of his surroundings in the slightest. _I have returned and I have a new master._ The ocean bubbled at the increase of speed, causing a commotion for those on its surface.

He broke through the surface of the ocean and jettisoned his way into the sky. A fishing boat full of gaping people watched him go and one of them managed to snap a picture before he disappeared.

 _I will find you all,_ He thought taking in the images that flashed through his mind as he flew over the clouds. A new team of Rangers had been formed but the bonds between Ranger and Zord were only now being established. This disturbed him greatly.

_A lot has happened in your absence, brother._

_Indeed, now tell me what I have missed._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Melanie Sheer is a character from the tie in comic of the film. It was called Power Rangers Aftershock. 
> 
> I have plans for Rita and how her base on the Moon works, stay tuned for that,
> 
> Tor the Shuttlezord is from the OG canon and I made him Tommy's Zord and for good reason. Oh and the Zords are now sentient because I just like that idea. Hopefully none of this was confusing.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait, I've been busy. This chapter is a bit....odd? There's some pseudo sex/seduction going on in this and it might not come across all that well. Sorry if it pisses you off.

Tommy groaned awake, blinking as a bright white light entered his vision. He shut his eyes quickly before trying to open them again

“You're awake,” A voice said from his side. Wait, He frowned, I know that voice.

“Kat?” He opened his eyes fully and tried to sit up.

“No, don't get up.” Kat gently pushed him back down on his bed and adjusted his pillow.

“How long was I out?” He rasped out. He really needed a drink.

“A few days,” He stared at her wildly. A few days?! “I talked it over with your school, said you were sick. They'll send over whatever work you need to do.” She cooed reassuringly with wide green eyes, as if he was a scared child.

He frowned again, not liking that one bit but whatever retort he had just bled away from his mind. What the hell? He thought.

Kat ran a hand across his cheek, “I was so worried about you.” He tried to speak but then she placed a finger against his lips, “Shh its okay.” Clawed fingers ran down his shirt swiftly, tearing it to shreds.

“What the fu-” His voice died in his throat when green eyes looked back at him but with a different face.

“Do you prefer it if I looked like this, baby?” Hayley asked him and he blinked. He struggled to sit up before his body went rigid at the snap of her fingers. “You naughty boy! I didn't say you could get up.”

She straddled him then while he grunted and tried to move, “Oh those noises could be made more naturally and with much more vigor,” She smirked, leaning forward and pressing her chest against his. “Imagine all the fun we could have.” She whispered in his ear before licking it and nibbling on the lobe.

When she leaned back, it was with a different face, one that he had only seen in blurry Instagram videos and piss poor photographs.

“You're the bitch that almost destroyed Angel Grove.” He narrowed his eyes at her while she scoffed.

“Now don't take that tone with me, Tommy.” She smirked, playing with on of the slits in her black shirt. “You and I both know that you have no love for this town – not after they discarded their skilled laborers like they were garbage.”

“Just because the people here did shitty things doesn't mean I want them to die. Despite popular opinion, I'm not that much of an asshole.”

Her smirk turned to a sneer, “Don't lie to me, boy. I can read your thoughts. I know how you feel.”

“Then you know that I wouldn't act on it,” He snapped back.

“Not even if I gave you an incentive?” She whispered, raising her hands above her head and dropping them. Kat and Hayley appeared at her sides, staring at him lustfully. “You could have them at any moment you wanted.” She licked her lips, raking her hands against his torso, “You could even have me for one night if you so desired.”

She took one of his hands and placed them on one of her breasts, much to Tommy's displeasure.

“Imagine how powerful I could make you, imagine what I could teach you,” She pressed his hand more firmly into her breast and ground her hips against him. He grunted in disgust. “Imagine the pleasure I could give you. Imagine the child we could create.”

Lizzie flashed in his mind then and he narrowed his eyes before he shot back at her.

“You got their eyes wrong,” He startled her with his words if her blank expression was anything to go by. Feeling bold, he pressed on, “Kat's eyes are blue. Hayley's eyes are brown.”

“And what of it?” Rita genuinely did not know where this was going.

“If you got those details wrong, then maybe you're not as strong as you'd like to think.” Tommy hoped that this would work, whatever he was about to do even though he had no idea as to what was actually going on.

“You took a peek in my head, now let me look in yours.”

Rita snarled and swung at him. Tommy caught the blow, much to her surprise. He gripped her other arm and slowly pulled himself back up as he regained some control over himself. Oddly, he felt a strong sense of support but he didn't understand where it was coming from.

“You're stuck on the moon,” He said with a grin after some images flashed in his mind. “Your outpost has an A.I. – Lokar, is it? You named it after your uncle.”

Rita was the one struggling now and she didn't like it one bit. Her connection to her coin was fading – she needed to sever the bond between it and Tommy now or she would lose her Ranger powers.

“Your base is called Bandora – like the death God of Eltar. Your brother is there, your war council is there – all in cryo tubes.”

Tommy was still grinning. Rita, on the other hand, started to fight back.

“A part of you wishes that you had killed your father that night,” She hissed, gripping at his arms and digging into his flesh. “But you were too weak to do what was necessary!”

“Coming from you that's rich. Do you even regret killing your friends and kneeling before your daddy like a good little slave?”

Rita roared and tossed him away from her. Tommy hit the wall of his room, going through it in one single motion and landing on hard concrete. He looked up and somehow, he was in the center of town.

Rita came charging at him, golden scepter in hand. She leapt into the air with a yell, the bottom point aimed at Tommy. He rolled away in time watching as the point stabbed its way into the ground. A kick to his ribs sent him barrel rolling through the air but he managed to land on his feet.

He gripped his side with his left hand and raised his right one defensively. Rita charged again, scepter raised.

Is this it? Tommy thought to himself. Is this how I die?

_No, master, it is not._

_Who the hell said that?_ Tommy took a startled step back, looking up when the scepter came down on his head. He raised his hand to catch it and he did, just not with his hand.

**CLANG!**

“My sword,” Rita whispered, shock and rage coursing through her veins as she saw her power weapon being held by this boy.

Tommy blinked, then pulled his hand back and swung the sword that magically appeared in his hand. He knocked back scepter with ease and tried to stab Rita with the sword.

Rita dodged, spinning on her heel. She let Tommy go past her before she swung her scepter at his exposed back. She grinned when it connected with his back and he cried out.

Now I really wish that I had learned how to sword fight when I was younger, Tommy thought, doing his best to block each of Rita's attacks. He never thought that it would be a useful skill when he had first learned Martial Arts but know he would have to reevaluate that stance.

Rita shrieked a few times, mostly when the blade bit into her skin and drew blood. It was just as beautiful as she remembered. Green metal with a single gold edge that was very sharp. It was a straight blade for the most part save for the curve at the tip and the handle and guard were black. The gold pommel that doubled as the means to summon her Zord gleamed at her mockingly as did the gold rings on the blade itself.

The thought made her furious, especially since it was wielded by such an amateur. She snarled and twirled her scepter in her hands before she jabbed the sharp end of it towards Tommy. He wasn't able to dodge fast enough and she felt a cackle of victory bubble up in her chest.

It died in her throat when her scepter hit against a golden chest plate. My shield, she thought with growing dread and sadness. Her green armor now fit perfectly on the human before her. In her dread and sadness, she lowered her guard.

 _Strike her now Master, and she will be gone from your mind_.

I don't know who you are, Tommy answered back, taking his chance to end this if what the voice said was true. But I would appreciate it if you didn't call me master.

The other voice did not reply just as Tommy's sword struck Rita. She screamed in pain and disappeared in a explosion of black smoke. Tommy was thrown back and the world around him exploded as well.

 _Fear not, Master,_ The voice said soothingly as Tommy screamed and fell into a black abyss. _You will wake up soon enough._

* * *

 

Rita twitched on the floor of her outpost, blood pouring out of her mouth and ears. Lokar sensed that its mistress was in danger and brought the medical facilities online. It flashed a light on her body to help with the healing process.

It opened one of the cryo tubes and jolted its occupant awake. There was a sharp gasp of breath and a widening of dark blue eyes.

“Master Rito, Mistress Rita is in trouble. I need your assistance in getting her to the medical bay.”

Despite his fatigue he pulled himself out of the tube, intent on helping his sister. He groaned when he took his first step and almost fell over but he pushed past it – his sister needed him.

When he came upon her and he saw all the blood, he growled low in his throat.

“Who did this Lokar,” He demanded of the A.I., speaking the tongue of his people. “Who hurt my sister and the heir to my throne?!”

 I do not know Master, one minute she was resting and the next her vitals indicated that she was not well. The Bana Tanks are operational, I just need you to get her there.”

Rito grunted, picking up his sister and cursing the fact that there were no helper bots to take his sister there already. It seems the the Royal House of Gadgetry has failed to keep their promise, He thought darkly but came out of his thoughts when he heard his sister whimper against his chest.

“Don't worry sister, you'll get better, I promise.” He whispered, placing a tender kiss to her forehead. “Lokar, update me on the status of Terra. Was my sister successful in retrieving the Zeo Crystal?”

The answers he got made him frown, including the bit that they had been in this part of the galaxy for millions of years.

That won't do, He thought. I will lead the others to Earth in my sisters absence, and we will get that Crystal.

No matter the cost.

* * *

This is basically Tommy's weapon but with the details in the story and with a longer handle for two handed use. Or better yet, imagine the Dragon Dagger mixed with this sword. If anyone can make a mock up of it, I would be extremely grateful since I am not the best at written descriptions.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next Chapter will feature the Rangers and their reaction to what's going on.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The rangers discuss the most recent developments.

Zordon frowned as he spoke to the Rangers, “I thought you all had bonded with your Zords,” He seemed perturbed by what they had told him. “Why did you not mention this to Alpha or myself?”

“Why didn't you mention that we could?” Jason asked back and not without some heat. If he hadn't told his Zord – Whose name was Argos apparently – to back off on the questions until Jason himself engaged in conversation, then he may have lost his mind.

“And why didn't you ask us about it to begin with?” Trini bit out. She had the most trouble adapting to this change, since her Zord could see every thought she ever had and tried to offer her advice and comfort. Things she did not need, least of all from a robotic dinosaur.

“To ask about the bond between Zord and Ranger is taboo – much like asking someone how much intercourse they have on a daily basis,” Alpha ignored the snickers at his words. “The bond you share with your Zord is intimate and should not be taken lightly.”

“Is there a way to get rid of it?”

Alpha swiveled its head towards Trini so fast that all the Rangers wondered if it could get whiplash. The potential barrage of words didn't come from Alpha, but from Zordon.

“The most efficient way to do so is for you to die,” He said coldly. “Not only will the connection be severed, but your Zord will suffer as well. They are not machines incapable of having feelings – they are just as sentient as you are. They cry out in pain, physical or otherwise, just like you.” He sneered at Trini who stared up at him with bared teeth. Jason noticed that it was mostly done out of reflex than actual defiance. She actually seemed frightened by what she just heard.

Through their new bond, he could feel the emotions of the others and they were not happy with what just happened.

“When I died, I could hear Argos calling out to me in my final moments, begging me to stay strong and fight.” He told Jason quietly. Jason swallowed past the lump in his throat but didn't comment. None of the others did either, thankfully.

“I imagine that my friends felt the same, save for Rita. And the connection goes both ways which is both a problem and an advantage. Much like the one you all now share since your team is complete.”

“Does that mean that there is a new Green Ranger?” Billy asked quietly, head cocked to the side. “Will they be like Rita?”

“Yes, a new Ranger has arrived – one that is compatible with this team,” Zordon spoke more measurably this time. 

“As for your second question, I do not know. The sixth ranger is always....you humans call it being a wild card I believe. They can be a team player or a lone warrior. None have ever gone against the code like Rita and still keep their powers, but if she could do it, then her successor could as well.”

“Then we have to find them and figure out what their deal is,” Jason said to the rest of the group.

“Well how are we gonna do that?” Kimberly asked. “They're not just going to fall out of the sky and into our laps.” Perhaps, a little dramatically, she looked up towards the roof of the ship with an expectant look.

“Yeah is there a way to track a power coin?” Zack looked over at Zordon with narrowed eyes. He seemed pretty upset about what just happened with Trini but didn't draw attention to it.

“Your coins should be able to find them if they are in close proximity to you. With luck, they may be a student at Angel Grove High School.”

“So we keep an eye out and go from there.” Jason nodded his head.

“What do we do if they're anything like Rita?” Trini demanded, some the anger she had earlier had returned but there was a slight hint of fear as well.

“Is there anything in the Ranger handbook about killing a fellow Ranger?” Zack asked, then winced. 

“If I knew the answer to that, Ranger Black, I wouldn't be in this wall having this conversation.” With that, Zordon disappeared into the wall.

“Oh you've done it know,” Alpha shook its head. It walked off to the side and retrieved a black box. “He'll be in there for a while so I would start searching if I were you. Here, I made you all something to keep in contact with us. Unless you prefer my hacking of your mobile devices?”

A resounding 'Fuck no' swept through the minds of the teens save for Billy, who actually intrigued by what Alpha had accomplished and hoped to replicate it if possible. Jason hoped that he didn't since he was sure that Billy might be a little too enthusiastic and scramble the phone of everyone in town by mistake.

Alpha opened the box and held it out towards them, “These are based on the old communicators that we used to use before.” From their point of view the Rangers thought that they looked like watches without the face of a clock or the digital time display. In its place was what looked like a part of a microphone with metal lines covering it.

“They're color coded and when you are being contacted they do this.” Alpha pressed the side of one of them and it beeped loudly. “Of course, a vibrate option is available.”

“That would be the best option,” Kim nodded her head, eyes drifting towards Trini who kept her head down. Jason noticed that too, and tried not to frown but focused his attention back on Alpha as it spoke.

“When you find this new ranger, be cautious in your approach, we do not know how they will respond.”

“We will Alpha,” Jason responded with a firm nod.

“What's the worst that could happen?” Zack added then frowned. “I just jinxed us didn't I?”

“Yep,” Everyone else groaned, including Billy.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This takes place a few days after the last one. Its mostly a set up for something bigger.

Tommy cracked an eye open and was greeted with a full head of curly blonde hair and soft snoring. There was a weight on his arm – two weights actually. The closest was obviously Lizzie but the second he wasn't sure about. He tilted his head up slightly, and peering into the sleeping face of his best friend.

He wrapped his free arm around his daughter and breathed in her scent, feeling at peace as he did so. The events that took place came to him then along with the relevant information that he needed which caused him to close his eyes and sigh.

 _Tor,_ He called out in his mind after a moment. _That is your name, yes?_

_It is indeed Master Thomas._

_Okay, first off, don't call me master. I know that bitch Rita enjoyed being called your mistress but I'll take no part in it. And second, call me Tommy. Thomas was my grandpa's name and I am not as curmudgeon as he was despite the opinions of a few._

_As you wish....Tommy._

It was clear that Tor disapproved of the shortening of Tommy's name. He and Kat would get along like a house on fire.

_Where are you exactly?_

_Hovering over the town of Angel Grove, ready to defend it should you call on me._

Tommy blinked, _You have your cloaking device on, yes?_

_I do. I don't think your species would appreciate the sight of me._

No they wouldn't, Tommy thought to himself. Maybe those who believed in the World Turtle would get a kick out of it though.

 _That's good. If the memories I got from Rita are true, you have a teleportation system._ He stated it as a fact instead of a question despite not being sure of its existence.

_I do. Are you interested in using it?_

_Yes. I need a way to get these two out of trouble should there be any._

Tommy wasn't stupid enough to think that he was in anyway safe. He had gained enough of Rita's memories to know of what threats were out in deep space. And he knew that humans were a curious and vicious lot. If anyone found out about what he could do, it wouldn't end well for anyone close to him.

_I can do that but I need a place to send them to or they could be lost through out the cosmos._

_And we wouldn't want that now would we? Can you find out where the other rangers are and make that the destination?_

_I can._

There was a slight pause.

_There are ranger energies coming from a nearby mountain – I believe that their base is an Eltaran ship, perhaps Zordon's. Yes, it appears to be so. I will set the course for Zordon's ship – I have done so before but I must re-calibrate it for you and your companions._

_Take all the time you need, I have no plans on leaving anytime soon._

He started to settle back into sleeping when he heard a loud bang from where the front door was and someone crashed through his window. They brandished a gun, yelling at Tommy to freeze.

Hayley and Lizzie jolted awake and screamed in near unison. Tommy yanked at the gun pointed in his face on instinct and kicked the person holding it back into the wall. He may have used too much of his new found strength because the attacker had screamed and took out the wall with his body, leaving a giant hole there. The hand gun lay crumpled in his hand before he tossed it away.

The door to his room was kicked down and more people poured in, all holding assault rifles pointed directly at him and by extension, the two most important people in his life. Lizzie whimpered in fright and buried her face into his neck after he grabbed her. Hayley gripped at his arm, staring at him with wide eyes, no doubt having seen what he did.

A smaller and more feminine figure walked into his room after the guys with guns. She smiled a shark like smile.

“Thomas Oliver?” She said rhetorically. “I'm Melanie Sheer of Apex – I was wondering if you wouldn't mind answering some of my questions?”

“Sure, when your goons stop pointing their guns at my daughter and her godmother,” Tommy said as calmly as he could despite the anger inside that threatened to bubble over. _Tor, please tell me that you have the teleportation device ready?_

_I could send you away now but it may cause damage to the Ranger Base._

_My daughter and my best friend are in danger – to hell with the base!_ It would not help establish a good relationship with the others but fuck it, he was desperate right now.

“Well,” Sheer spoke up, drawing his attention. She looked at the damage he caused when he kicked his attacker through the wall and raised an eyebrow. “For someone whose been asleep for the past three days, you sure have a lot of energy.”

“What can I say, I'm well rested.” _Tor, on my signal, get us the fuck out of here._

He gripped Hayley's hand before placing his arm out in front of her protectively and held his daughter close when she whimpered.

“Daddy,” He could feel her tears staining his shirt and he almost growled. Hayley gripped at his shoulder and cooed soothingly at Lizzie.

“I'm sure you do, but myself and my employers would like to speak with you about what happened in that warehouse you were going to fight in.” Sheer's tone made it clear that this wasn't a request.

“Warehouse? What warehouse?” _In three, two, one -_

“Grab them,” Sheer scowled and many things happened at once. Green lightning danced across Tommy's body, which resulted in a shot being fired. More shots rang out and Tommy threw his hand out, summoning his sword and armor in fear.

A golden force field was hastily erupted and stopped the tranquilizer bullets from reaching their destination. Melanie Sheer watched with rapt attention, taking in this new development. He looks like a ranger, She thought as his green and gold armor glowed.

_Tor, get us out of here!_

“Hold on to me,” He told Hayley through his voice distorter. She did as he said and just in time too, as they all disappeared in a swirl of light.

Sheer pressed two fingers to her ear, “Did you get all that?” She spoke into her comms. Receiving an answer she barked out, “Lets move out boys! We gotta get back to base.”

If he is a Ranger, does that mean the others were human as well, She thought. Were they wrong in their assumptions that the Rangers were solely aliens? She would find out and the best way to do that would be through Tommy Oliver.

* * *

 

For the past couple of days, the rangers had a very difficult time in dealing with the fact that another ranger existed. They weren't sure how the team dynamic would work now. They had busted their asses in training and almost died together. Now there was some random person coming in that would change all that.

They spoke to their Zords who claimed that their brother, Tor, was now awake and bonded to his new companion and that had opened up their connections. It was tough, feeling an emotion on your own, then feeling it through your teammates and back. They were trying to control it and Jason, as team leader, was trying to reach out to the new Ranger through the link.

He hit a wall every time with the occasional feeling coming through. The explanation he received for that was that this new ranger was in a deep slumber. Apparently, they had battled Rita for dominance over the Green power coin and when they won, their body had to assimilate to the new power much like they had.

As they were going over a new plan to find the new ranger and as they made their way to the control room, the link got slightly stronger. The person had woken up, feeling content. Then there was a confusing swirl of emotions. Anger, mixed with calm mixed with rage and then fear.

There was a slight explosion then and the ship shook violently while they tried to process what happened.

“What the ever loving -” Whatever Zack was going to say was cut off by a jolt of green lightning.

Green light swirled in a corner of the room, and three figures materialized. One was a small and frightened little girl who stared at them with wide eyes before she buried her face into the person holding her.

Said person was wearing green and gold ranger armor and holding a sword in a defensive position. The last person half hid behind them and spoke soothingly to the child.

“I come in peace, I swear,” The first words were said through the silver face plate which disappeared by the time the sentence was done.

“No freaking way,” Zack burst out first when the identity of the Green Ranger was revealed. “You're the Green Ranger?”

“Tommy?” Billy asked quietly and with no small amount of surprise.

Tommy Oliver tried to smile but it came out like a grimace, “Hey Zack, Billy, everyone,” He seemed really nervous – as nervous as Jason has ever seen him at least. He'll be the first to admit that he knows nothing about the guy even though he's known of him since Kindergarten. He wants to speak, to tell him that its okay and that they can talk about this but he's beaten to the punch.

“How the hell did you get in here?” Trini bites out, glaring at him with nothing but hate which they can all feel through their bond.

The little girl whimpered and Tommy purses his lips just as the doors open and Alpha comes running out.

“Rangers! Wha-” Alpha stops and stares at Tommy. “The new ranger has arrived – good! Although I am not sure that they should be here.” Alpha points at the little girl and the other person who Jason now recognizes as Hayley Ziktor, Tommy's best friend.

“I ask for sanctuary on behalf of my daughter and her godmother,” Jason took a step back in surprise. Tommy had a daughter? He can feel the surprise of his team and even a bit of sheepishness from Trini. “I'm invoking Eltaran protocol as a Ranger and demanding that they be given sanctuary.”

Alpha leaned to the side in thought before nodding, “Very well, but you are to be subjected to interrogation in return.”

“Give me your word that they will be safe and I will willingly surrender myself to you.”

“Tommy,” Hayley whispered but thanks to their heightened senses, they all heard it. “You don't know what they'll do to you.”

“I have an idea as to what the Automaton has planned – but I want his word first, as the son of King Lexian, that you and Lizzie will be safe.”

“You seem to know a lot for a human,” Alpha commented idly but with a slight edge to his voice.

“Rita tried to get into my head and use my memories against me – the link went both ways. She knows my history, I know hers. If you want that information then I'll give it too you – for the safety of my daughter and my best friend.” Tommy felt and looked weary but there was an underlying tone of strength to him as well.

“As the son of King Lexian of Edenoi, your companions will be given sanctuary.”

Tommy stared for a moment before nodding, his armor bleeding away but the sword remained, “Take this Hayley – careful, the blade is sharp.” He held the sword out to her by the handle.

“Then why are you giving it to me? You know I don't do so well with sharp things.” She took it anyway despite her tone.

“Its a promise – that you will see me again. And there is no one I would trust more with the life of my child or my sword.”

The rangers could feel the sincerity of his words through their bond but not everyone believed him because of their time with Rita. Tommy definitely felt all of that if his glance in their direction was anything. His face turned thoughtful.

“To make you guys more a little less tense, how about a gift or two?”

Swirling lights matching the colors of Kim, Zack, Trini and Billy appeared in front of them, more specifically, their hands. Weapons appeared out of thin air. Zack was given an axe, Trini a pair of daggers, Billy, a double sided trident, and a bow for Kim.

“Pull the drawstring back,” Tommy murmured to a confused Kim. She gave him a slight glare but did as he said. An arrow made of pink energy formed when she began to pull it back but disappeared when she let go. “It won't fire until you pull it all the way back and the longer you hold it, the stronger the shot will be.”

“Why would you give this to us?” Billy asked, sounding very confused as he eyed his weapon. “Why would you help us use them?”

“I have Rita's memories of everything she's ever done – even the stuff she did to you. I know the weak spots in your fighting styles. Not to mention that I have known how to fight since I was five years old. You guys will need every advantage to feel safe when it comes to me.”

The words were spoken honestly and calmly and without a hint of trepidation. Jason saw the sense in what he was saying but he was also looking for the angle that Tommy was coming from. What did he really hope to gain by doing this?

“And these weapons belong to you now. Tor was holding on to them since the days of the last team for a variety of reasons – its time that they were wielded by Rangers once again.”

“Thank you Tommy,” Billy said quietly and with a smile. “You haven't steered me wrong before.” The others were confused. Since when did they speak to each other like friends?

“Its the least I can do for an old friend.” Tommy said softly. “How's your mom? She okay?”

A swell of indignation swept through the Ranger bond but it was drowned out by the happiness Billy felt.

“Oh yeah – she's great! She wonders about you sometimes. She said she used to see you around with bruises and cuts. She wanted you to come by so she could talk but I never really had the chance to ask you about that.”

“I do miss her cooking and our conversations,” Tommy chuckled. “Tell her I appreciate the concern but that I'm okay.”

“You can come over you know, she'd love to have you. She can make Bacon Mac and Cheese for you – do you still like Bacon Mac and Cheese? Or are you a Vegan? Or -”

“Let's see how my interrogation goes first huh?” Tommy interrupted him with a smile. He peered at his daughter. “Lizzie, baby? I need you to stay here with Auntie Hayley okay?”

“No!” The girl cried and her arms became vice like as she tightened her hold.

“Its gonna be fine baby. Daddy will be right back, I promise.”

She sniffed, “Promise?”

“I promise.”

She sniffed again, leaning up to kiss his cheek before reaching for Hayley. Tommy handed her over without another word and his daughter buried her face into Hayley's neck with a sob. He kissed her on the top of her head and kissed Hayley on the cheek while she gave him a look that only they knew the meaning too.

Tommy nodded at her then looked at Alpha, “Take me to your commander, Alpha Five.”

Alpha's right arm shot out towards Tommy and wrapped itself around him. Tommy grunted his displeasure and Hayley jumped back in fright and Lizzie whimpered at the motion.

“Alpha,” Jason began, feeling uncomfortable at what he just saw. They were supposed to just talk to him, not imprison the guy.

“Its alright,” Tommy bit out. “I'm alright. Lets just get this over with.”

Alpha started to drag him away without another word and the others followed at a more sedate pace, with varying emotions on their minds. Jason stayed back to speak with Hayley.

“He'll be fine, we just want to talk with him.” The look she gave him could have melted steel.

“Talking and interrogation are two different things, Scott,” She snapped at him. “I would think that even a former Quarterback would know the difference.”

Jason let the comment wash over him – he knew that she was more upset at the situation than at him.

“He'll be fine,” He stopped, at a loss for words and he started walking away.

“If anything happens to him, you will pay.”

He paused for a moment, trying to think of something to say but he couldn't. This whole situation was ridiculous and he wondered just how much more ridiculous it was going to get.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next one will be from Trini's POV.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Continues directly from the last chapter with some Sheer at the end. Sorry for the wait.

Trini was both apprehensive and pissed. Mostly pissed to be honest. Why the hell did they need another Ranger when they were perfectly fine as they were? What had they done to piss off the universe to shackled with this guy and the bond the unwanted bond they now had.

She was being slightly dramatic, she knew, but she remembered the things that Rita did to her when she violated her sense of security. She could remember the intoxicating scent of her breath when she pleaded with Trini to join her. She could remember what Rita's tongue felt like or how Rita nuzzled people affectionately.

She remembered all the things that happened and how much they revolted her. And she remembered the color most associated with those things. So when she saw Tommy in his armor, despite its differences to Rita's, she felt enraged at the mere sight of him.

It wasn't his fault that the coin chose him but it came with some major baggage that affected everyone.

She eyed him, twirling her daggers with no finesse. They felt like they belonged in her hands – a thought that both thrilled her and gave her slight anxiety because she knew that these daggers had a history that she didn't think she could live up too.

_Mistress, you need not worry -_

_Not now, Levira,_ Trini almost snapped but stopped short of doing so. She didn't like this bond and she hated that she had it but given the new information she got, she would try to be less of a bitch to her Zord.

_But -_

_Please, just let me deal with this on my own. If I need help, I will tell you._ Trini hated that she sounded weary instead of confident but it had the effect that she wanted, her Zord stayed quiet after that. How is it that a metallic dinosaur respected her wishes more than most people ever did? She shook her head in irritation at the thought.

“Ranger Green, where is your Zord?” Alpha spoke up for the first time in a while and coming to a halt.

“Floating above Angel Grove, Automaton.” Tommy said flatly. “He wants to know if you need help in fixing the ships teleportation system and if you want to move the ship entirely. He says the mines are not structurally sound.”

“That is something to consider,” Alpha commented, swiveling his head around to stare at Tommy. “Are you uncomfortable?”

“Would you care if I was?”

“Not really no.”

“Then why ask?”

“Just being polite.” Alpha tugged extra hard and sent Tommy crashing to the floor. Alpha dragged him all the same even when he went limp.

“If this is how you treat people politely, remind me never to piss you off,” Zack muttered and there was a hint queasiness about him. Billy was in dismay but he kept his word like he said he would when they came up with this plan.

Trini felt guilty about not including Jason in on it but he was a little too kind hearted sometimes so they agreed to keep this quiet. She eyed him, watching the way he scowled slightly and gripped at his sword. She felt him summon it earlier but she wasn't sure where his head was at.

Kim was probably the only one in the group that was of the same mindset as her even if she didn't know the whole truth – Tommy couldn't be trusted so easily, not after all that had happened.

Alpha dragged Tommy through the doors and Zordon glared at him as he was thrown into the room.

“Ranger Green, identify yourself.” Zordon barked out.

“Kiss my ass,” Tommy grunted out and received a lash from Alpha for his trouble which made him yelp and fall over.

“The protection you asked for your child and friend will be revoked if you don't speak up.” Alpha said by way of explanation when several glares went his way. Trini felt a bit of shame then, as she thought of the little girl that came with Tommy and his friend. The poor thing was clearly scared out of her mind and now she was separated from her dad.

Which, depending on how this went, could be a good thing or a bad thing.

“Its for the Ranger Archives,” Billy told Tommy quietly, kneeling beside him. Trini wanted to tell him to get away, even when she realized that he was using his body to shield Tommy's. But he looked her way with a fierce look that she had never seen before so she kept quiet. “I had to use my full name when we were logged in to it even though I didn't want too.”

“That's not the issue Billy, I don't trust him.” He jerked his head towards Zordon. “I have her memories old man – I remember everything she did to everyone. But I also remember everything you and your team did to her.”

The words were said with such strength and malice that Trini almost recoiled in shock.Especially since he said he remembered everything that Rita did.

“She loved you all and in more ways than one. And you turned your back on her when she needed you the most,” He scoffed and shook his head.

“Her bullshit attempts at destroying the world could be laid at the feet of you all, but that would just distract from the fact that Rita and what I assume is the US Government are after us Rangers.”

“What part of the Government,” Jason stepped forward, sword at his side. Trini thought the Rita bit was more important but the look on Jason's face tells her that he wasn't going to listen to anything else.

“Spies or some shit. A group that calls themselves Apex,” Tommy said, gauging everyone's reactions. Surprise and anger swept throughout the bond as he spoke. “Some woman named Melanie Sheer showed up at my house with some friends and they wanted some information out of me.” He looked around while they processed what he said.

It was bad enough that they attempted to find the ship but now they had actually gone to a Rangers house? This was bad, really, really, bad.

“Tor says you should really consider moving the ship, our sudden transportation damaged it too much to stop the mountain from collapsing in on itself. If you don't want to do that, he's willing to give some of his old parts to help re-enforce the damaged areas.”

“Well if you hadn't just shown up out of the blue,” Trini muttered, earning a huff of agreement from Kim. Tommy's blank face looked in her direction but he didn't look directly at her.

“My daughter means the world to me, short stack,” He said and she grimaced, especially when Zack grinned at her. She knew he was going to be using that as a nickname along with the others he had.

“You have no idea what it means to see your child get threatened in that way and I hope you never have to go through that fear and anger the way I had too.” He sighed and looked at her with tired but kind eyes before turning away. For a brief moment, she thought of her brothers Enrique and Jackson and what she would do to those that threatened them.

Dark thoughts started to enter her mind before she pushed them away. No, she had to focus on what was in front of her and not any hypothetical situation.

“Just strap me to the chair and view my memories,” He said suddenly to Alpha and Zordon. Chair? Trini frowned in thought.

 _He speaks of the extraction chair mistress,_ Levira told her. _It was used as a way to get information out of the defeated foes of the Rangers._

_So it what, makes you tell the truth?_

_No, it takes memories directly from your mind. Its quite powerful and dangerous. If Ranger Green has asked to use it despite the risk, he must understand how dire the situation is._

That did nothing to help Trini's feelings about all of this.

“That's what you want right – the information I got from Rita?” Tommy continued as everyone frowned in thought.

“Yes,” Zordon snapped out, speaking for the first time in awhile. “We need to know where she is.”

“Fine, but Jason handles the kill switch for it. He is team leader after all.” Tommy looked up at Jason then. “It'll stop the machine when you hit it and I'll be released from the chair. Keep in mind that you'll feel what I feel, the pain included and you might be tempted to end it sooner than necessary.”

“Will you die from this?” Jason asked quietly. The others had frowned and Billy seemed scared at the thought. Shamefully, Trini didn't exactly feel one way or the other about that prospect.

“I don't know,” Tommy admitted. “I would be the first human to go through with the process.”

“I can't -”

“Look,” Tommy slowly got to his feet to stare Jason directly in the eye. “I don't know you, and you don't know me -”

“Ranger Green-”

“My name, is Tommy, not Ranger Green.” Tommy bit out, glowing green eyes locked on Zordon as his face contorted into a snarl. Trini felt her heart stop for a moment along with her breathing at the sight. Kim grabbed her hand and squeezed. Trini was grateful for that if the sharp intake of breath she took was anything to go by.

 _It will be alright mistress_ , Levira said soothingly and Trini was happy to hear her voice for once. Alpha had raised a hand to strike at Tommy but Billy blocked him whilst holding his weapon out in a defensive position.

Zack shifted his body a little, just in case he needed to stop either one of them. He held his axe uncertainly but Trini knew that he was capable of dealing with the two of them regardless.

Alpha lowered his hand reluctantly.

What connection do they have? She thought, eying Billy and Tommy with some frustration. Sure, the two had shared small smiles here and there at school but she thought that maybe they shared a class or something. But Billy was acting like Tommy was family.

She wasn't sure how she should feel about that.

“I am not some faceless soldier that you can bully into submission – I am a living, breathing person,” Tommy continued more calmly, eyes reverting back to their natural gray. “Jason is the Red Ranger and in this I will recognize his authority over me – not yours.”

He turned to Jason, “You're going to have to make some tough choices as time goes on, but I trust that you will do what is best for the team.” He held his hand out for Jason to shake.

Jason stared at it, “That's a lot of pressure to put on someone.” He looked up at Tommy. “That's also a lot of trust to give to someone. Especially if you could be killed by this thing.”

“I'm not the one who got the red coin,” Tommy shrugged. “Nor am I the one who said that Red was the team leader.”

Jason stared at the hand again before he shook it firmly.

“What about your daughter,” Kim threw out and Trini wished she hadn't because Tommy looked their way.

“Her godmother will protect her, and if anything happens, I doubt her mother will be idle,” Tommy said simply. “Who knows, maybe I'll haunt all of you until you die if anything happens to her.”

It was clearly a joke – a poor one at that – but Trini was unnerved by the mere idea of that.

“And for the archives,” Tommy said with a sigh. “My name is Thomas Patrick Oliver, the green ranger of the Earth based team.”

“That is the whitest name I have ever heard,” Zack murmured with a slight smirk. “You should try and find a white coin to match.”

Tommy snorted, “It wouldn't surprise me if there is one.”

* * *

 

Melanie Sheer tapped her fingers against her desk, looking over some of the pictures that were there. Her plan to draw Tommy Oliver out was simple – take his remaining family hostage and confront him at the High School. She already had his parents and uncle taken into custody, she just needed his sister.

She considered taking the parents of his apparent best friend who was with him nearly all the time, but her parents already worked for Apex and were on another project. Not that their daughter knew about their jobs – she bought their cover as technicians for a small company in Silicon Valley as far as Sheer knew.

Then again, Haley Ziktor was easily one of the most intelligent people of her generation. Though, she clearly had poor tastes in friends if she actively chose to surround herself with the likes of Tommy Oliver.

Her plan was working so far, but she needed to get the attention of the other Rangers. Problem was she had no idea how to do that nor did she know their identities. So she needed to make sure that Tommy Oliver understood that he would give up that information willingly or his family would suffer the consequences.

Shame we couldn't get his daughter, She thought to herself. If they had grabbed her and held her hostage, the boy would crumble. She tapped her chin and wondered if they could risk an international incident in grabbing the girls mother.

She shook her head, her bosses would not appreciate having to explain to the Australian Government about why one of their law abiding citizens was taken by American agents. They barely tolerated her current plans but it was all she could think about doing.

It was fortunate that they did not find the boys body in the rubble and knew where he lived. Watching him sleep for three days straight as if he was dead to the world was boring but telling. Whatever it was that gave him these powers could be given to anyone that was human.

And the Rangers would surrender themselves or that power to the US Government. They would decide who could wield such a thing.


	9. Chapter 9

Jason held the kill switch uncertainly in his hand. He thought this was a bad idea, given how that it may end up killing his new team member.

He frowned, should he really be calling Tommy that? He barely knew the guy, outside of reputation. Sure, he remembers him from when they were kids but, Tommy moved away and back to this Town too many times to count, and he didn't always go to school with them. Before he came back a few months ago, he had been going to Amber Beach High School.

Now he was the Green Ranger and Jason had many questions that needed to be answered. Tommy took off his shirt, and Jason frowned even more as he saw the scars on his torso, and the tattoos as well.

“Dude, what the fuck,” Zack whispered, eyes wide. Billy looked to be on the verge of tears. Kim brought a hand up to her mouth in shock, and Trini turned pale.

“Tommy,” Billy whimpered out, and rushed forward to hug the other teen.

“Whoa! Billy, I'm fine,” Tommy was startled by the sudden hug, they all were. Tommy pats Billy's back softly. “These are nothing, I promise.”

“Where did you get them?” Jason barked out, and Tommy turned to him with a slight glare before he sighed.

“The tattoos or the scars?” Tommy asked back. Jason gave him a look of 'are you fucking kidding me right now?' and Tommy huffed at that.

“I used to fight for money,” Tommy glared at everyone besides Billy, daring them to say something. None of them did, “I had a fight scheduled this week actually – until the putties showed up to get the coin.”

“The coin was there?” Jason asked as Billy pulled away with a sniff. Tommy continued to pat his shoulder lightly.

“Yeah, the sponsor of my opponent brought it with him. Don't know how he got it though, and I can't ask him,” He rubbed at his neck, partially over the scar there which Jason frowned at. The one on the back of Tommy's hand was even worse.

“Why can't you ask him?” Alpha asked this time.

“The putties fucked up the building we were in – you guys know the old warehouse not too far from the docks?” Almost everyone nodded, except for Trini since she had only moved to Angel Grove within the last year, and hadn't really explored the town.

“Well the roof collapsed on top of him and I don't know if he survived. I would have checked, but Apex showed up and we needed to escape.” He paused and sighed. “Brace yourselves.”

The ship rocked from side to side for a few moments before things settled.

“That was Tor fixing the support of the ship,” Tommy explained with a sigh after the rocking was finished. “It won't hold forever, and you will need to relocate your base – the sooner the better.”

He frowned slightly. “Hey Billy, can you go check on Hayley and Lizzie? They must be scared out of their minds. And it would be good for you to meet your goddaughter.” He added when Billy seemed ready to argue.

“I have a goddaughter?”

Billy sounded so excited at the prospect of that that it made nearly everyone smile. Jason frowned slightly, but waited to see where this was going.

“Not on paper, but I did promise you that my first born would be your godchild didn't I?” Tommy smiled, and accepted the excited hug he got.

“I'm a godfather!” Billy cheered, and Tommy laughed.

“Just be careful with her alright – she's been through a lot.” Tommy said softly, earning a serious look from Billy.

“I promise.” He said and started to leave before he looked at Jason, silently asking for permission. Jason knew that Kim and Trini wanted him to say no – the looks on their faces made it plain for the world to see – and Zack just shrugged. Tommy just waited for him to decide.

“Go on Billy,” Billy smiled widely, and bolted out of the room. When he left, Jason rounded on Tommy, “Explain, now.”

“I wanted him, my god brother, to meet his promised god child,” Tommy said simply. “And I wanted to explain these,” He gestured to the scars on both his neck and hand. “Without upsetting him further.”

“So you're god brothers,” Jason said slowly, taking a step towards Tommy. “He's never mentioned you, and you two never hang out.”

“I've had a lot of shit to deal with for a long time, but I'll give you the cliff notes version. My dad and his dad were as thick as thieves when they were kids. So when they started having kids, they raised them together as they promised they would, and when my uncle Jim died, a part of my dad died too.”

He closed his eyes, “My dad was there when James Cranston died screaming. He begged for help – and so did my dad. The mining company did fuck all for those that were killed, or injured that day outside of paying small sums here and there. My dad didn't receive any therapy even though it was company policy that he should.”

He clenched his jaw, “He started drinking to cope with the pain – something my mom didn't like, not one bit. She stuck around for awhile until she left with my sister. They even changed their last names to avoid being attached to the town drunk. Small town, small minds and all that.”

On the surface, Tommy sounded bitter to Jason's ears. But the bond showed that while he was a little bitter about it, Tommy was actually quite hurt by the small minded mentality.

Tommy snorted and looked at his hand before running a few fingers along the scar.

“This used to hurt all the time cause of the nerve damage– especially if I made a fist,” He murmured. “And now, nothing. Its as if its not even there but I can see it and I know what it should feel like.”

“It feels like that part of your body doesn't actually belong to you,” Jason threw out to surprised glances. “I feel that way with my knee,” He patted his formerly injured leg before he eyed Tommy.

“Do you wanna talk about it?” He asked quietly.

“Not really, but since I know almost everything that happened to you thanks to Rita, I owe you something.” Tommy's reply was flat but not harsh.

“No you don't,” Trini spoke up then, her voice hoarse. “You don't owe us anything.”

“You don't have to lie short stack,” Tommy murmured, looking up at her before looking away. “She hurt you guys badly, and I have her coin now. I have to deal with the consequences of what she did.” He scowled when protests were raised, “Look me in the eye and tell me that all of you are okay with this coin being active again?”

He raised his coin in the air and it went quiet.

“And that is a consequence that I will have to deal with,” Tommy was resigned to this, they all could see it and feel it. There was no changing his mind. “Let's just get this over with, before the talking wall and his pet robot decide to speak up again.”

He held up a hand and glared at the two in question, “Not one word out of you two. I mean it. One word and you will be reduced to nothing but scrap,” He snapped at Alpha. “And you will be nothing but a memory – a bad one at that.” He growled at Zordon before making his way into the chair.

* * *

 

Melanie took no pleasure in what she was watching but she would familiarize herself with the images she saw. She needed to appear strong when she confronted the boy. It wouldn't do if she flinched at the sight of torture.

Patrick Oliver screamed at the top of his lungs when the knife cut into his flesh. His ex wife coughed and sobbed when her head was pulled from the water. Their daughter convulsed under the volts of electricity that coursed through her body.

All of this was needed if she were to gain the boys cooperation. That's what she told herself even as a bit of doubt lingered in the back of her mind.

“Agent Sheer?”

She turned, “What is it?”

“The care package from the Valley is here,” Her assistant answered, trying and failing to not appear affected by what was on the monitors. “And the serum you requested is also ready.”

“Good. I'll be there in a moment,” Sheer turned back to the the monitors and barely acknowledged that her assistant had left. If what the Ziktor's had found was useful, she would see about getting them a pay raise.

* * *

 

Rito watched as his sisters hair was slowly turning white in her healing tank. He eyed her chart and was almost relieved that her vitals were reading normally.

_“Master Rito.”_

“What is it Lokar,” Rito looked to the main control panel as a display popped up.

 _“I can confirm that there are six active ranger energies,”_ The displayed showed all six colors, including green, all in the same area.

“How long before we can invade Terra?” Rito growled out before frowning. “And what is that flickering light there?” He noted the white light that blinked on and off.

_“We have enough energy to send a small squadron to the planet – I could reroute some of the energy from the battleships to give us a near indefinite supply of power. However, the patrolmen we have on hand are not as strong as the one Mistress Rita can make.”_

“They will have to do,” Rito muttered bitterly, thinking that Finster's Putties were cheap imitations in comparison to Rita's, but they could prove useful. “And reroute the power if you must. Now, the light?”

_“The blinking light represents another Ranger energy but I cannot determine why it blinks. I have never seen a white energy signature before.”_

Rito had never heard of such a thing either but the Morphing Grid was vast and those who were granted its power were numerous. Perhaps this was a dying Ranger or was a coin left by a dead Ranger, either way, it would bear watching.

“Update me when you have completed your tasks.”

_“Yes, Master Rito.”_


	10. Chapter 10

Tommy still felt drained after what happened in the Ship two days ago. Drained emotionally at least, physically he felt fine even if he wished he could just sleep for a bit.

“I can still get you the meds my parents make,” Hayley whispered, leaning into his side. Tommy wrapped an arm around her subconsciously. He felt her breath hitch when his hand touched her hip and started to pull his hand back, thinking he had over stepped the boundaries. “Its fine.” She cleared her throat to stop him. “So, about those meds?”

She looked up at him, brown eyes concerned. He smiled slightly.

“Unless they help with near emotional breakdowns, I don't want em.” He murmured. He could vaguely hear the murmurs of surprise at his appearance. He hadn't bothered to cover up his scars and Tattoos this time. He was going to be in detention for the rest of the year anyway, and after what happened in the ship, he just didn't care any more.

“Besides, won't your parents notice that some of their shit is missing?”

“They don't even notice when I'm missing,” She huffed bitterly. “They didn't even say goodbye when they left for their 'conference'.” She sneered.

“Still think they're doing something nefarious?” He teased but he knew that Hayley was really being serious. Her parents never mistreated him when he would visit their home – mostly because they hadn't noticed that he was there. If anything, Hayley's parents were airheads which was hardly a crime.

“Oh they definitely are,” She muttered, taking her seat at their usual lunch table. “If you saw the stuff I found in their lab, you would not think that they were just pharmaceutical genius's.” She gave him a look that said she was being serious. “And the drugs they made definitely should not work as well as they should unless they were made with government help.”

“So what do you think they're doing?” Tommy frowned.

Hayley started to answer but they were joined by another presence.

“Zack, what the fuck?” Tommy hissed. Tommy told the others to keep their distance from him since Apex knew who he was. This way they and their families would be safe.

“Hey,” Zack grinned. He leaned in, face turning serious. “There are people watching you guys – they definitely have never been here before. No – Don't look. Just be aware.”

“You realize that if these guys are Apex, you've just endangered yourself and your family,” Tommy hissed again. Zack wouldn't joke about something like this but he was still acting like an idiot right now.

“I already moved my mom to some place safe,” He said mysteriously. He didn't mention his dad and Hayley and Tommy didn't ask.

“That doesn't mean that they won't find her – this is the US Government we're talking about,” Hayley whispered furiously. “Your mom might still be in danger!”

Zack went to respond when the doors to the cafeteria burst open.

“Him!” A voice squealed in outrage and Tommy almost put his head in his hands, but his head did drop in resignation. He knew who that voice belonged too. He looked up again when Skull continued.

“That's him – fuck him up!” Skull pointed at him with a knife as he, Bulk, and about ten other guys filed in carrying a good variety of weapons. Shit, there was no way to end this quietly with everyone watching. Where the hell were the teachers?

“Both of you, when I say so, get away from the table.” Tommy whispered to his friends.

“I am not leaving you,” Hayley whispered furiously. “Not again.”

“I got your back on this one man, I'm not running.” Zack said sharply.

“Not asking you to, I just need a clear shot.”

“Jack him up!” Skull continued. Tommy got a good look at his face and he seemed....different. Like he was on something but Tommy never saw this kind of reaction before so he couldn't be sure. “Make him hurt bad!” Skull growled out.

“Whoo!” One of the other guys suddenly hooted, rushing forward.

“Now!” Tommy shouted, shoving the table with all his super powered might. The table went flying when Hayley and Zack moved out of the way. It skidded across the floor before tipping on its side. The guy that charged jumped over the table in a manner that no normal person could which shocked Tommy briefly.

The guy would have directly landed on top of Tommy if he hadn't dived forward to dodge him. The chair he was sitting in shattered under the sudden force of the landing. The guy spun, foot lashing out in the hopes of catching Tommy unawares. Tommy caught the foot, and snapped the guys leg at the knee.

That did not seem to phase the guy one bit, as he still tried to swing at Tommy whilst limping. Tommy swung his leg out, and clipped the guy under his jaw sending him flying. He turned in time to see Hayley jab a needle into her leg before, she intercepted a punch to the face.

She smirked, and used the combos that Tommy had taught her a few times, but with much more speed, and strength than she normally possessed. What the fuck was in that syringe? Tommy thought, utterly bewildered.

Zack used a few kicks, and punches to fend of a few guys, and Tommy went to help him but never made it.

Tommy dodged a blow and swept the dudes legs out from under him, before he stomped him in the face. A roar caught his attention too late, and he felt a massive weight knock into him, sending him flying. He skidded across the floor before he bumped into a few people, knocking them over.

“Need a hand?” Jason's voice wafted into his ears, before a hand was thrust in front of him. He took it, and shot up into to punch Bulk square in the face, which Jason followed up with a kick to the gut.

“Incoming!” Billy shouted behind them, before he jumped over both of them with a fire extinguisher raised above his head. He struck Bulk directly onto his head, knocking him over and rendering him unconscious.

“You fucker!” Skull came at Billy with insane speed, knife at the ready, when a flying kick from Kim sent him sprawling towards the ground. Kim flashed Billy a smile just as Trini dove head first into another guys stomach, knocking the wind out of him.

“You alright,” Jason asked some of their classmates, who nodded fearfully, or backed away when he asked the question. They both noticed, but pushed that to the side, when the doors to the Cafeteria burst open again, and guys with assault rifles filed in shouting at them to freeze.

Tommy and Jason traded looks, before raising their arms in surrender, and walked forward. Neither were entirely sure that they were bullet proof without their armor, so they complied.

“On your knees!” One guy stood in the front, rifle aimed directly at Billy who moved a little too slow for him. The guy got right in his face, with the barrel aimed at the middle of his forehead.

“Get that gun out of his face, or I'll break yours,” Tommy snarled at the guy, who ignored him, and poked Billy with the barrel of his gun. Tommy took off like a shot, and let his fist crash against the guy's face, knocking him to the floor. Tommy swept his hands out, and extended his power shield to block the bullets that were fired directly at him.

The shield curved around those holding the assault rifles so the bullets ricocheted in many directions if they didn't hit those that fired them.

“Rubber bullets,” Tommy grunted, closing the shield above those that fired so the bullets wouldn't escape. “They're still alive.” He clapped his hands when the bullets stopped, and the shield disappeared.

“You alright Billy?” His god-brother just nodded and looked around. Tommy frowned and did the same. In the silence that followed, he caught the fearful gazes of his fellow classmates, and bit back a sigh.

Dealt with one fight only to deal with another, He thought. There was no way in hell that they could just explain this all away. The sound of clapping drew his attention immediately, and he growled.

“Sheer.”

“Young Thomas, you seem to be well since our last encounter,” She smirked. Several more people clad in black gear followed behind her, aiming their guns at the faculty members they brought with them.

Shit, Kim thought with a grimace, that's all of them.

“You threatened my family, and you nerve to smirk at me right now?” Tommy snarled at Sheer.

“Last I checked your daughter was fine and so is Miss Ziktor,” She gestured for a tablet that one of her men was holding. Tommy started growling at the mention of his daughter- now the whole school knew about it, thank fuck they didn't know her name just yet.

“But what about the rest of them,” She tapped the tablet and held it out for him to see his sisters face as she was being tortured. If Jason and Zack hadn't caught him when he jerked forward, he would have torn Sheer to shreds.

“You bitch!” Tommy roared, eyes flashing green. “What the fuck is your problem?!” He jerked, and growled as he tried to break free. Billy came to help, and so did Trini who wrapped herself in front of Tommy, and pushed back. Kim went to stand in front of Hayley.

“I'm fine,” Hayley whispered, but Kim shook her head.

“You can't morph. You'll need the protection.”

“What did you do with my family?!” Tommy's shout gained her attention.

“The same thing that will happen to theirs,” She gestured to his team mates. “If all of you refuse to comply.”

Whatever else she was going to say was cut off, when the cafeteria windows exploded, and grey skinned creatures came through.

“Of all the rotten luck,” Kim muttered, watching as the Apex goons started shooting at the creatures to no effect. “Guys its time to morph!” She called out to her team mates.

What happened next would forever change how their school mates viewed them.


	11. Chapter 11

Amanda watched, aghast as the girl who almost ruined her life turned into one of the heroes that saved the town, and her father. She couldn't believe her eyes, and thought that this must be a bad dream, or something. There was no way in hell that a girl like Kimberly Hart could ever be a hero. Her friends couldn't believe it either.

Colt looked at the spaz he bullied not too long ago, and winced. Oh man, now it made sense why he kicked my ass without actually trying. The nerd was a superhero! He thought with another wince.

Jason's old Football team were equal parts dismayed, and pissed about this development. Some felt guilty for abandoning him after he took the fall for them, and felt guiltier even now. Those who didn't appreciate what he did were pissed, because they thought that he could have been useful for the past season.

The rest of the school couldn't quite believe it either, even with the evidence right in front of them.

The Rangers thoughts? Well there goes the rule book they collectively thought, defending their schoolmates from whatever these things were supposed to be. Tommy cut off the head of one and it crumbled into dust.

“Aim for the head,” He shouted out, shoving an Apex agent out of the way. “Guns are useless for this you dumb fuck!” He snarled, swinging his sword in a wide arc. The others heard what he said, and adjusted their battle plans. “Everybody get against the walls!” He shouted at the students and teachers alike who were startled but did as he said.

Hayley had moved quietly to stand behind Sheer and held the needle at her throat.

“While this is empty, I can still cut you open,” Hayley whispered dangerously. “Give me the tablet, slowly.” Sheer complied, transfixed as she watched her men fall one by one under the assault of these creatures.

“Hey Aisha,” Hayley called her lab partner over. The girl walked over quickly and with wide eyes, “Hold this for me, will you?” She handed over the tablet over without waiting for a response.

“Miss Ziktor,” Ms. Appleby, her History teacher called to her as she checked Sheer's person.

“One moment,” Hayley murmured, grinning in triumph as she removed Sheer's gun. “Anyone know how to use this?” She asked the teachers, holding up the gun.

“Don't wave that around,” Mr Caplan hissed, taking it from her. Hayley rolled her eyes and continued her search, until she grabbed something in Sheer's pocket that made the older woman fight back. Hayley gasped as a strange power surged through her.

“Not that!” She hissed, but Hayley just smacked her in the back of the head, knocking her out. Some of the Apex agents saw this, and turned their guns on her. Instinctively, she raised her hands and a white light shot out of them, much to her surprise.

The Rangers felt the energy, and looked over to where it came from.

“Uh guys?” Billy grunted as he ripped off the head of the creature that tried to get past him. “Why does Hayley have a power coin?”

Hayley's vision started to blur, but she held the light, and pushed the Apex agents away, and into the oncoming horde of monsters. She stumbled forward, until Adam Park caught her, and pulled her back.

“Hayley!” Tommy shouted, swinging his sword to cut down several monsters, and running to his best friend. Zack filled in his spot, swinging his axe wildly. “What happened?” Tommy asked Adam, face plate shifting away so he could speak normally.

“I don't know, she just fainted.” Adam stuttered out as Tommy took Hayley from him, and gently placed her on the floor.

“Give me your jacket,” Tommy said to Adam who took it off, and handed it to him. Tommy folded it up hastily, and put it under Hayley's head. He examined the coin in her palm. “Guys, I think this coin bonded with her, but its dying.” His words sounded stupid even to him, but that was the best he could come up with the blinking coin that was losing its light. Hayley's pulse was faint as well.

“We won't be able to get her to the command center with all these assholes around,” Zack shouted out.

Tor, can you teleport Hayley out of here? Tommy asked his Zord.

No, She appears to be influx due to the coin. You won't be able to carry her either, since it would scramble the signal.

Damn, Tommy thought.

“I'm gonna try something stupid, I need you guys to cover me.” Tommy said out loud, pressing one hand to his shield. He called upon the separate energy that powered that, and it pooled in his hand. He then pressed his other hand to Hayley's chest, and pushed the energy into her body.

“Tommy, what the hell are doing?!” Jason shouted, feeling the energy spike in their bond.

“Just trust me,” Tommy grunted as his shield fell away in pieces, and started to form around Hayley. It wasn't until the shield formed completely around Hayley that she gasped awake. Unfortunately, a surge of power erupted when she did, and Tommy was flung backwards. The energy wave followed him, and he would have crashed into the horde of monsters, if they hadn't disintegrated because of the wave. He just fell to the floor, cracking it open.

The civilians were unaffected by the wave, but the Rangers were knocked over.

“What the hell was that?!” Zack asked incredulously, face plate falling away.

“Dunno,” Jason muttered. “Everyone alright?”

“Uh Jason,” Billy murmured pointing at something behind them. Jason turned and froze, and so did the others. Because standing in the middle of all of this was Hayley, wearing White Ranger armor with Tommy's gold shield, and two short swords in each hand.

“Holy shit,” Tommy said in awe as he stared at his friend. “I can't believe that worked.” His eyes rolled into the back of his head, and he passed out, and Demorphed.

* * *

 

Rito growled, “What do you mean our forces just disappeared?!”

_They are gone Master, Lokar repeated. There was an energy surge from the White Ranger Energy that obliterated them completely._

“You said it was fading,” Rito accused his A.I.

 _And now it is not. It appears to have bonded with the others_.

“Damn!” Rito roared. “How soon can we send another force?!”

_My sensors indicate that sending another one so soon would not be beneficial._

As master and A.I. Debated, Rita shifted in her Bana Tank and her hair now had a white streak in it. Her hands clenched at her sides and rage flowed through her. Soon, She promised herself. Soon she would be strong again.

* * *

 

On Zordon's ship, a white ranger pad appeared next to the green one, much to the surprise of Alpha and Zordon.

“What the hell are those kids doing out there?” Alpha muttered, tinkering with one of the old viewing screens to try and get a visual.

“It seems we have another ranger on our hands,” Zordon said with exasperation. “With our luck it will be Hayley.”

“She seems to have a good head on her shoulders,” Alpha commented before cursing as a brief picture came in before it disappeared in static.

“She's far too loyal to Ranger Green for my liking.” Even now, Zordon refused to call Tommy by his first name.

“Well of course she is - she's in love with him.”

“Love?” Zordon frowned at the Automaton. “Are you sure?”

“Of course, I know how to read the vitals of humans,” Alpha paused in his task, and gave his old friend an 'offended' blink of his eyes. “She loves him and he would deny being in love with her.”

Zordon pondered this information, “Are you absolutely sure?”

Alpha 'sighed', still working on the viewing screen.“Yes, I am sure. Both of them love each other even if one of them won't admit it.”

“Hmm,” Zordon frowned but said nothing more.

* * *

 

In the Philippines, an Alien ship activated and launched itself out of Mount Babuyan. As it took flight, it scanned the area for predators to copy. It settled on the indigenous Eagle that resided there and shifted its parts around to mold itself after it while it flew.

Several AI bombarded it with questions as their bond began to form, but Saba ignored them for now, and reached for its new Master, or rather Mistress in this case.

 _Mistress?_ Saba called out to Hayley who tried very hard to not jump in shock.

 _Oh wow that is weird._ Hayley replied in her head, trying to get used to what was happening to her. _Who are you?_

 _I am Saba,_ It said proudly. _And I am your Zord._

 _Okay,_ Hayley thought slowly. _I need to make sure that this isn't a really vivid dream or something. Can I call you back?_ Hayley honestly felt stupid for thinking that, but considering what just happened, she needed a little time to process all of this.

_Of course, I will confer with the other Zords to determine their location. I still have some work to do to get the form I desire. I will speak to you later._

Hayley blinked as she felt the other presence leave her mind.

“Hayley?” Kim came over to her, and waved a hand in front of her face. “You okay?”

“Uh yeah,” Hayley murmured, feeling Kim's worry in her own heart. “Does this mean what I think it means?” She gestured to herself.

“Yeah,” Kim said with a slight smile. “Welcome to the team.”

“Thanks.” Hayley looked around and saw Tommy on the ground. “Oh god what happened?” She rushed over to him, almost knocking Billy and Jason over in her haste.

“Energy overload,” Billy said quietly. “At least that's what I think it is. He's still alive though.”

Tommy groaned then, “Anyone got the name of that bus that hit me?” He opened his eyes and sat up. “Everyone alright?” He was asking his team mainly since he had a feeling that they were affected by the blast, but they weren't the ones to respond.

The school did.

It started as a dull mutter, and turned into a roar of people demanding answers.

A gun shot rang out, cutting everyone off. They all turned and saw Sheer on the ground with a pistol in hand. She had it aimed at the ceiling.

“Now here's what's going to happen,” She hissed out, slowly bringing her gun down, and aiming it at Tommy. That was as far as she got because Mr. Stone, the P.E. Teacher and Baseball Coach, hit her in the back of the head with a chair. She dropped back to the floor, and he took her gun away from her.

“You might wanna check to see if she has another one, Coach,” Tommy called out, moving to stand. He groaned and cracked his back by stretching. “If she had that one, then she might have another on her somewhere.”

The man just nodded, and started searching the woman for any other weapons.

“Hold up!” Someone screeched suddenly. Kim stopped her self from flinching, as Amanda made her way over to her. The Rangers made to intercept her. Surprisingly, it was the newest Ranger that stood in her path before she could reach Kim.

“Back off,” Hayley snarled at her. “If this has to do with that picture you lied about, just quit while you're ahead.”

“You-”

“Back off,” Hayley cut Amanda off. “Or I'll tell everyone here about how you and Ty were banging one another while he was dating Kim.” She gasped dramatically at Amanda's paling skin. “Oops.” Hayley grinned.

Kim looked shocked, “What?!” She gasped out while a lot of their classmates murmured both in confirmation, and confusion at Kim's response. Did she not know? They thought.

“Oh you didn't know Kim?” Tommy asked, surprised himself. “I thought that was why you punched Ty in the first place. He can't stop bragging about all the girls he's been sleeping with.” Now the guys except for the ones on the team murmured in their confirmation of what Tommy said. “He was banging Amanda while he was with you. I think he's with someone else now while he's dating her.”

Ty actually had the brains to keep his mouth shut, while Amanda gaped at Hayley. How did this bitch know about her secret?! She thought to herself.

“Unless you want your daddy to have to pay the police a shit ton of money,” Hayley continued with a growl. “Back off. Everyone here knows what kind of person you are.”

“And what is Kim?!” Amanda screeched.

“A fucking Power Ranger,” Tommy snapped at her whilst holding up his coin. “These things decide who gets the power, and only the best of us can wield it. If she was as bad as you've tried to claim, she would have let your father die instead of saving him from the Putties.”

As touched as Kim was, she was confused. Why were they defending her?

“Perhaps we should all take a breather,” A voice said near the Cafeteria entrance. The Rangers snapped to attention, weapons raised, and ready to attack. “Wait!” A middle aged man called out, hands raised while the people behind him raised their guns.

“You with the government?” Jason demanded, sword at the ready.

“My name is Captain William Mitchell, I work with Lightspeed Organization,” The man said. “Yes, that is a Government Organization, but we're here to work with you.”

“Oh yeah,” Tommy growled, armor clinging back to him in response. “You plan on taking their families as well?” He gestured to his teammates.

“I plan on giving yours back,” Captain Mitchell pulled out a phone from his pocket, and began to dial. After hearing a few rings, he spoke into it, “Put her on.” After another moment, he threw the phone towards Tommy who caught it.

“Hello?” Tommy heard thanks to his hearing, and he blinked.

“Sis?” He asked, pressing the phone to his ear. “Where are you?” He couldn't really follow what she was saying, because she was crying too much, “I'll come and get you, I promise.” He continued to make the same promise repeatedly before he hung up the phone.

“All of them are alive,” Tommy glared at Mitchell who nodded slowly.

“Your father is in pretty bad shape due to his medical problems. Your mother, and sister are recovering better than him.”

“I'm going to help clean this shit up,” Tommy gestured around the Cafeteria. He took several steps towards Mitchell and his people. “And when I am done, you are going to take me to my family. No ifs, ands, or buts.”

“It might be better for you to come with me now.” When Tommy only glared at him, Captain Mitchell continued, “Your father is dying, he may not make it after tonight.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for not updating any of my stories lately, I just haven't really felt like writing all that much. I'll try and not to take so long to update again, but I can only promise to try. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.


	12. Chapter 12

Tommy sat with Hayley in his lap, arms encircled around her waist. They were in the back seat of an SUV, being taken to where his family was. The dark look on his face made everyone who didn't know him a little uncomfortable.

“Are you comfortable?” The agent who sat with them in the back seat asked Hayley, who just gave her a dirty look.

“I'd be more concerned about yourself,” Hayley said flatly. “Me sitting here is, but one of two things that are stopping him from pummeling all of you.”

“What's the other thing?” The goon driving them asked back, sounding just as flat. It was almost as if he was daring them to try something like that.

“Answers,” Tommy growled at the other man, rising to the challenge. “More specifically, how did Apex trick me into thinking that they didn't have my family?” That was the only thing that bothered him outside of the torture. He thought it was the best option at the time, or he would draw attention to them. Now he was kicking himself in the ass for not actually going to check if they were alright. He would not be making a mistake like that ever again.

“Apex is – or rather, was – in possession of some very powerful voice software that could mimic any voice they desired.”

Tommy's closed his eyes at the Captain's words, “So when I called to check in on my family, they weren't actually there.” He stated plainly.

“No they were not,” Captain Mitchell sounded sympathetic, but Tommy ignored him, and just buried his face into Hayley's neck. He did this more so to stifle the tears that threatened to fall from his eyes. If I ever see Melanie Sheer again, I am going to kill her, He thought to himself as Hayley just patted his arm.

Not another word was said throughout the rest of the car ride, a fact that both teenagers were grateful for.

* * *

 

Jason was starting to get annoyed with all the stares he was getting, more specifically, the ones he got from his former teammates. After what seemed like an eternity, Damo cautiously approached him as he placed some of the rubble in a wheelbarrow.

“Um, Jason?” Damo asked nervously.

Jason stared at him blankly, “Yeah?” The other Rangers paused in what they were doing, to watch this unfold. The rest of the students near them did as well.

“Can we talk?” Damo glanced at the other Rangers who stared at him unblinkingly, “Alone.” No one budged, and they just stared at him, which made him fidget in place.

“What's there to talk about? We're not friends.” Damo flinched at what Jason said, but Jason was staring at the other football players. Cowards, he thought, as not one of them moved to help Damo, “Let me guess, this about what I can do right?”

Without waiting for a response, he picked up a large, thick piece of rubble, and crushed it to dust over the wheelbarrow.

“I can do some amazing things, but I have to make sure that I don't lose control. If I ended up playing a game and lost my cool, someone would get hurt, even killed. I'm never gonna take that chance, not that I would anyway, I'll never play for this school ever again.”

He stepped towards Damo, who took a step back, “And why would I? I took the fall for you bastards,” He gestured to everyone on the football team, not caring that everyone was watching. The team scowled at him as he continued, “And you all just abandoned me, like what I did was meaningless.”

“You're absolute fuckers, and even if I wanted to play again, - Which I don't - I'd rather play for another school just so I could kick your asses up and down the field.”

It felt good to get this off his chest. It was nothing more than a weight that sat there, and stunted his breathing. He actually relaxed for a bit, but not entirely.

“I'm sorry,” Damo looked really uncomfortable as he said the words.

“And I believe you,” Jason told him softly, and then crushed his hopes of instant forgiveness, “But I can't forget that you chose them, over me.” With that said, he picked up his wheelbarrow with both hands and walked away to dispose of the rubble. The other Rangers followed, even if they didn't have much rubble themselves, in a show of solidarity.

Only when they were far away enough and hidden from the other students, did Jason crumble in relief.

“I'm sorry about that,” Jason sighed through his nose, “But with them staring at me like morons, and with Tommy's anger...”

Kim kissed his cheek when he trailed off, “We get it, babe, we're not mad at you.”

“If anything, we're glad that you finally let loose a little bit, boss man,” Zack's smirk was twinged with sadness. “We know that you've been holding that in.”

“Its not healthy to do that,” Billy added, looking uncomfortable.

Trini said nothing, as was her way, but she squeezed his shoulder to comfort him. He placed his hand over hers in thanks.

“I'm worried about Tommy,” Jason admitted. “If his dad dies, I don't know what he'll do. I don't think he'll be like Rita, but he'll need us. I know you aren't sure about him, but we have to be there for him.” He said this directly to Trini who only sighed.

“I'll be there, I promise.”

“Um, Zack?” Aisha said cautiously from behind them, and Zack grimaced at his ex-girlfriend after he turned to her.

“Yeah?”

“The teachers want to see you guys,” She narrowed her eyes briefly at him, before she turned kinder eyes towards the others, “I think your parents are here.”

“Oh joy,” Kim's sarcastic quip summed up the entire situation.

* * *

 

Tommy stopped in front the door to his fathers room. He had already seen his mom and sister, and knowing that they were not in immediate danger, he decided to see his dad now. The only problem was he wasn't sure if he actually wanted too.

“You don't have to go inside,” Hayley said softly, squeezing his hand.

“What kind of son would I be if didn't?” Tommy said, bitterness creeping into his voice.

“One that became a father of his own,” Hayley retorted quietly and sharply. “He almost took you away from Lizzie.” He almost took you from me, She didn't say that last bit out loud, but Tommy definitely felt that in the bond. He turned his head to her, and bent down towards her face.

Hayley squeaked in surprise at the sudden kiss to her lips. Tommy didn't linger, especially when she did that, but his intent was clear.

“That's my promise to come back,” He said, squeezing her hand, before he opened the door, and stepped inside. He quietly closed the door behind him, so Hayley just went to sit in one of the chairs, and wait. It was better than having to deal with her parents, who were apparently being held for questioning on the base. Captain Mitchell offered to take her there, but she declined. She wasn't sure if she would be able to talk with them right now without yelling.

Tommy, for his part, approached the hospital bed cautiously. For whatever reason, his father's head snapped to him.

“Tommy?” Patrick asked quietly.

“Yeah dad, its me.” Tommy said gruffly, frowning when his dad's face scrunched up.

“Tommy, I -” Patrick hiccuped before bursting into tears. Tommy started crying too, and he rushed to the bed to hug his dad. Because despite what his dad had done, Tommy had never wanted him hurt. He never wanted to see him again, but this was just not acceptable.

“I'm so sorry,” Patrick repeated over and over again, gripping at Tommy desperately with weak hands. Tommy just held his dad, ignoring how the Heart Monitor went nuts at the raised pulse. “I never meant to hurt you.”

His dad stutters through each word, and Tommy hastily tries to close the blood between him and the others. He's only partially successful as all the memories hit him. From the first time his dad had lied about getting better, all the way to their last fight, it hurt then, and what was going to happen next would hurt even more.

Because his dad was about to pass out. And normally, that wouldn't be a problem, because he would wake up and the cycle would continue. But Tommy knew from the moment he stepped into the room, that his dad was not going to make it past this encounter. He could see it in his eyes – the light there had been fading, and that was why he chose to hug his dad. He didn't want to see them fade any more.

“I want to forgive you,” Tommy whispers, eyes on the Heart Monitor, watching as it continues to drop. “But I can't. My daughter would have gone through the rest of her life without me. I'm sorry, dad, I can't forgive you. But I never stopped loving you.”

Gradually, the monitor continued to show a drop until it went flat and the obnoxious noise started to blare.

“I never stopped,” The words came out in a strangled sob. Tommy hugged his fathers limp body before he gently let him go, looking into the dead eyes of his father. He sent a silent apology to his teammates, before he let go of his emotions. The door to the room opened then, and several people rushed to the bed, asking questions while trying to help his dad.

Tommy just got up and left, tears streaming down his face, and with a strong urge to hit something. He barely made it out of the room, before he was overwhelmed by the grief. He fell to his knees, arms instinctively wrapping around Hayley who had rushed to him. He buried his face into her middle, staining her shirt with his tears.

And in that moment, the scream he had been holding in finally came out.

* * *

 

Jason was in the middle of hugging his mom when he felt it. He gasped quietly as the grief and rage flowed throughout the bond. Tears filled his eyes, and his lower lip trembled.

“Jason, what's wrong son?” Sam Scott frowned, placing a hand on Jason's shoulder. It was then he noticed that the other teens were crying as well.

“We're bonded,” Zack spoke flatly when Jason didn't answer. Sam eyed him, watching tears flow freely down his face, despite obvious attempts to hold them in.“Which means that we can feel each others emotions and pain. Tommy, one of the other Rangers, is in pain right now. The kind that you don't ever really heal from.” Strangely, that both answered whatever questions the other parents had, and created new ones.

“He-He mourns,” Kim whimpered to her parents, holding them close to her. Bewildered though they were, Maddy and Fred Hart embraced their daughter. It was the first time in a long time that any of them had done that.

“Which means that his dad is d-dead,” Trini stuttered at the end, grabbing both of her parents too. Billy had buried his face into his moms shoulder, and sobbed. Jason grabbed his dads hand, and didn't let go of his mom. Aisha, who hadn't left her exes side, though she had been told too, gave him a hug that he gladly returned.

“I'm sorry about dumping you,” He murmured to her. “I didn't want to, but I -”

“We'll talk about that later,” She cut him off, giving him a big squeeze in response since he sounded so distressed. “Right now, just let it all out, I've got you baby.” She closed her eyes when he started sobbing to stave off her own tears. “I've got you,” She repeated, relishing in the fact that she got to hold him again. I'm never letting you go, She thought to herself. You're mine Zack Taylor, and I'll do my ample best to remind you of that fact.


	13. Chapter 13

Tommy's face was wet from his tears, his eyes red, but he was calmer than before. The support he had been getting from his teammates felt unearned, but was welcomed none the less. Hayley gripped his hand, and kissed his cheek which also helped a bit.

“What do you you want?” Tommy asked Captain Mitchell coldly. “I know that you didn't do all of this for charity - not entirely. So what do you want? Information? Compliance? I can't really give you much of either I'm afraid.”

“My condolences for your father,” Tommy just nodded his head at that. “As for what I want, I just want to understand.”

“Understand what?” Tommy bit out. “How my powers work? How I got them?” He shoved his hand into his pocket, and retrieved his Coin. He tossed it onto the desk in front of him, ignoring how the Agents around them had tensed at the action. “Good luck trying to figure that out.”

Captain Mitchell looked at the Coin curiously, eyes widening when the coin just floated back to Tommy. The teen rolled his eyes, and snatched the coin out of the air.

“I'm not entirely sure that I can answer any questions you have, not without the others, nor without breaking any more rules.”

“Rules?”

“Yeah, we have rules. The biggest one we all had was that we couldn't tell anyone that we had powers. Now that its out of the bag, I expect there to be some consequences for that fact.” He looked around, as if he was expecting something to just appear out of nowhere.

“I need to speak with my friends before I can give you any answers,” He wasn't sure if he should be referring to them as friends, but it was easier than saying teammates all the time. “You'll get some answers from me, Captain, but I am not speaking for everyone else.”

There was a beat of silence that Hayley broke.

“Do you have my parents laptops or electronic devices, Captain?” She asked him flatly. When the Captain nodded with a curious look, she continued, “May I take a look at them? They might have some information that I need. I'm sure that you would be interested in them as well.”

Captain Mitchell thought it over before shrugging, “I don't know how you could find anything since we couldn't, but what could it hurt? Give Miss Ziktor her parents personal effects.” He told the Agents in the room.

The Agents looked reluctant to do so, but they complied all the same. They came back sometime later, with everything that her parents had on them when they were arrested. Hayley grabbed the Tablets and Laptops, hitting the power buttons on all of them.

“You can watch what I'm doing if it makes you feel comfortable,” She told the Agents who still looked displeased with this development. She started going to work without waiting for an answer, typing quickly as soon as the screen came on for the laptop in front of her. She knocked down her parents ecryptions and safeguards as soon as they appeared.

“What are you looking for exactly,” Tommy asked, thankful for the distraction. He couldn't follow what she was doing, but he watched all the same.

“Answers,” Hayley answered quickly, eyes glued to the screen. “They haven't told me a damn thing, and they probably -” She stopped when a bunch of files appeared on the screen. She clicked on one, and read it when it opened.

“How did you do that?” One of the Agents demanded, and was then ignored as Hayley opened another file.

“Grayson, leave it,” Captain Mitchell said, eyes on Hayley, watching as her face became angrier, and her breathing became heavier.

“Hayley?” Tommy felt her distress in the bond, and placed a hand on her shoulder. The file on the screen didn't make any sense to him. It was just jumbled words, and equations. But whatever they were, they were reducing Hayley to near tears.

But Hayley didn't want comfort, or to calm down, she was too pissed for that.

“Where are they?” The words came out in a growl, as she leveled a glare at Captain Mitchell. “Where are my parents?!”

 

* * *

 

 

Rito paced back and forth, waiting for his lieutenants to awaken. The first to do so was Baboo, who blinked owlishly.

“My prince,” He said, voice harsh and raspy from disuse. “How long was I asleep?”

“For too long,” Rito growled. “The Royal House of Gadgetry have failed us. And Terra has Ranger's to protect it.”

Baboo frowned at the information, “Princess Rita?”

“She was injured by the new Green Ranger,” Rito growled again, eyes alight with rage. “I have need of my Long Range Assassin, should you choose to accept the mission at hand.”

“Of course.” He would be foolish to decline the job.

“Gather your gear, and do some reconnaissance on Terra. Should you have a clear shot at the Green Ranger – Take it and retrieve the coin. It belongs to my sister.”

“I will do as you command, my prince.” Baboo bowed his head and Rito nodded sharply.

“Eat your fill and get ready to leave in two hours time,” Rito nodded at the table to Baboo's left, and left the Med Bay after that. Baboo watched him go with a curious expression. Whomever this new Ranger is, they must be formidable, he thought, taking a piece of bread from the table beside him. He would have to tread carefully going forward, lest he be killed in combat.

Or worse, be left at the mercy of his master. The thought made him shudder. Rito Revolto did not understand the concept of mercy.

* * *

 

 

Hayley's nerves were frayed but she was trying to remain calm.

“Where is she?! Where is our daughter?!”

Of course, hearing her parents screeching from the other side of the door, didn't help.

“You sure that you want go in,” Tommy murmured, kissing her temple.

“Yeah I do, I need to get this off of my chest.” She murmured back, feeling the love and support from her best friend, and relishing it. “Stay here please.”

“I will,” Tommy promised, taking a step back. “But I'm coming in there if you get too upset.”

“Deal.” She gave him one last look, before she shoved the door open. It slammed against the wall, and cracked under the force. The Agents in there went for their guns, while her parents blinked in shock.

“Its alright,” Captain Mitchell spoke up then. “Miss Ziktor is here to see her parents, clear the room.”

The Agents holstered their guns, and walked around Hayley to leave.

“Oh sweetheart,” Her mother, Ismay, stood from her chair and rushed for Hayley.

“Don't come near me,” Hayley stepped back to help emphasize her point, and shook a finger at her mother when she tried again.

“Hayley? What's wrong?” Her mother looked confused, and so did her father. Hayley reached into her pocket, and pulled out her coin.

“I know, everything.” Her parents looked a little put out at this revelation.

“Where did you get that?” Her father, John, asked sternly.

“From your psycho boss,” Hayley snapped at him. “She showed up to my school with some of my classmates doped up on your unfinished serum!”

“Hayley, calm down.” Her mother murmured, and tried to take a step closer.

“Stay away from me!” Hayley shrieked at her. Her mother flinched away, staring at Hayley in shock.

“For the past year, you two have done nothing but lie to me! I had to crack the encryptions on your computers to get a straight answer for once! And what do I find? You two have been conducting illegal experiments on anyone you could get your hands on!”

Hayley took in a deep breath, while her father came to hug his wife.

“Your experiments almost destroyed my school, and endangered everyone there. You two are lucky that no one has come to kill you for this. They wouldn't be wrong to do so.” She hawked her spit and spat in their direction.

“Hayley,” Her mother sniffled.

“I. Know. Everything.” Hayley ground out. “Including what you did to me.” Tears sprang to her eyes, and she left the room quickly as a sob escaped her lips. She ran to Tommy, and buried her face in his chest. She gripped at his shirt desperately, and with a wail on her lips.

Tommy wrapped one arm around her, and raised a fist at her parents who tried to follow her, “One more step, and I ram this down your throats.” He glanced at the Captain. “Can Hayley and I leave? We'll be in your office.”

“Go to Med Room Three, you'll have more privacy.” Captain Mitchell countered, not taking his eyes off of Hayley's parents. They were narrowed dangerously. “Agent Grayson will take you there.”

For once, the Agent didn't have a disapproving look on his face. In fact, he looked sympathetic. Tommy casually picked Hayley up like she weighed nothing. As he settled her into his arms, he gave one last glare to her parents.

“Have fun in Prison,” He snarled at them. In truth, he wasn't sure if they would be getting jail time, but he knew that they would never see Hayley again. He would make sure of it. “Lead the way, Agent Grayson.” He said to the clear second in command of Captain Mitchell's forces.

“This way,” Agent Grayson gestured and started walking away. Tommy followed, ignoring the cries of Hayley's parents. The only crying he was focused on was the one from his best friend. Grayson, thankfully, did not engage in small talk, and Tommy had enough time to process what the hell just happened.

Hayley had never been so angry before, or if she had, she had hid it well from him. Not even when he would come back from a fight with all the injuries in the world, did she raise her voice to berate him. He sighed quietly, and tried to center himself again, reluctantly drawing on the support from the team.

He would have to not make that a habit from now on.

“Do you two need anything?” Grayson asked quietly when he lead them into the Med Room.

“Some note pads and some pens. We need something to distract us.” Grayson nodded and left. Tommy settled Hayley into one of the beds.

“You wanna talk about it?” A stupid fucking question to be sure, but one worth asking. When Hayley didn't answer, he let it go, and went to retrieve the supplies from Grayson who came back in after a few moments.

“They experimented on me,” Hayley spoke up after Grayson left again. Tommy blinked, turning to stare at her.

“What?” He asked hoarsely, walking over to her, and dropping the supplies on the bed. He knelt in front of her. “Sweetheart, what was that?” He had heard her, but he had hoped that he had misunderstood.

“They experimented on me when I was a kid.” Hayley's lips trembled as she tried not to sob.

“You don't -”

“I have to get this out, and then I have to write down a cypher for the Captain to use, because I am not reading those files anytime soon. I don't -” She broke off with a sob. Tommy took her face in her hands.

“Take your time,” He murmured, kissing her cheek.

“Oh Tommy I'm sorry, you just lost your dad -” She began to blabber.

“I will deal with that in time,” He cut her off gently, fighting back tears at the reminder. “Right now, I want to help you.”

Hayley gave him a look, but took in a shuddering breath, “Do you remember when I was sick for almost an entire summer? When we were six?”

“Yeah, it was one of the most boring times of my life.” Tommy fought back a grin as Hayley chuckled, just as planned. It wasn't that bad actually, because he had Billy to keep him company, but he had missed Hayley so much during that time.

Hayley's face turned serious, “I was dying, Tommy. Apparently I'm a twin, but my sibling was absorbed into my body, and was growing inside of me, my head specifically. I used to have headaches all the time, and nose bleeds too, remember? My parents were desperate when my condition got worse, and -” She choked up here. Tommy caressed her face and that gave her the strength to continue.

“They killed the Ranger who had this before me.” She held up her coin, and Tommy felt her shame in the bond. “He name was Delphine of Aquitar, and she crashed on Earth over a century ago. Her Zord landed in the Philippines, and she landed here in North America. The crash ruined her connection to the Grid, and she was captured because of her lack of strength.”

Which explains why the coin was dying, Tommy thought to himself but didn't say out loud.

She blew out a harsh breath, “Her species needs a constant water supply to survive. So the American government gave her enough to live, but not enough to regain her strength. They tortured her, abused her, and when I was dying in the hospital, my parents killed her.”

Her tears came back even stronger, “The serum they made, the one I used to help fight those idiots in the cafeteria, they made it from her blood. And the reason it works so well with me and not them, is because they used it to revive me when I died on the operating table.”

The words echoed in Tommy's head before he took her into his arms. She clung to him, and buried her face in his neck.

I died on the operating table.

I died on the operating table.

He had almost lost his best friend. A selfish thought, but that was all that was running through his mind at the moment. That, and fuck John and Ismay Ziktor forever.

“They kept giving me her blood afterwards, to help stabilize me, except it was in the Vitamins I used to take.” She added after a moment. Tommy recalled the purple vitamins she had to take, and her reluctance in doing so. She said that it used to taste nasty. “They even made the pills I used for you after your fights. They even used them in trials for even stronger drugs, most of which ended in death.”

As she went silent, Tommy asked lightly, “You got all of that from jumbled up words and equations?”

Hayley tightened her grip, “When I was little, they taught me a way to read and write things differently, so no one could copy my notes or I could solve equations more easily. I guess they thought that I would never find their secret projects so they kept doing it. Idiots.” She huffed, and pulled away from him.

There were fresh tears in her eyes as she looked at him, “This coin isn't mine Tommy, I didn't earn it.”

“No one has, the damn things are sentient. They choose who gets to use them,” He told her softly.

“Then how do I know that it isn't confusing me for Delphine?” She sniffled. “My blood and her blood are mixed perfectly -”

“Irregardless of what it is,” Tommy cut her off again. “I could think of no one better to honor Delphine's legacy.”

“You don't even know what her legacy was,” Hayley pointed out.

“She was a Ranger, she couldn't have been all that bad. Not even Rita was a terrible person at first.” He pressed his forehead against hers. “Whatever the reason for you having the coin now, you are worthy of holding it. If you don't trust yourself to believe that, then trust in me because, let me tell you, I think you're worth it.”

There a was a pause and then...

Tommy blinked in surprise when he felt her lips on his. When it became clear that she wanted more, Tommy gently kissed her back. Hayley pulled away after a moment.

“I've been wanting to do that for a long time,” Hayley said, sneaking in a peck or two. “We shouldn't do this because our emotions are too high, and our thoughts -”

Tommy kissed her again, cutting her off. He stopped and pressed his forehead against hers, “I'm going to grab a notepad and start drawing. Otherwise....”

“Otherwise what?”

“We might get caught by Mitchell and his Agents. I'd rather not give them any more ammo on us.” He ran a thumb alongside her cheek. “We'll have to talk about this when we have some real time to ourselves. I'm sorry if I went too far.”

“That makes sense, and you didn't.” Relief flooded through her, and Tommy was happy that he hadn't overstepped. “And I need to get started on that cypher.”

She kissed him on the lips again, and went to grab a note pad, and pen for herself. Tommy did the same, and started drawing up some ideas, if only to distract himself.

 

* * *

 

 

Carter Grayson had left them in relative privacy, but he wasn't that far away. He still caught enough of the conversation to know that these kids – because that's what they were – needed to be looked after in every potential aspect from now on. Not in a malicious way, but in a supportive one.

They may be super powered, but they were still human. So they would need psych evaluations, and physical check ups every now and again. Maybe the Captain could bribe them with something so they could go, he thought to himself.

Either way, he vowed to make sure that they got whatever they needed. Because if they were to be Earth's first line of defense against hostile invaders, they needed to be taken care of. The healthy kind of care, not the over indulgent kind.

And they needed training, which he would provide. Oh, they were going to hate his training sessions, and maybe even hate him too. If they lived longer than him, and saved the world effectively, then he would deal with it.

Because he would be damned if he lost even one of them on his watch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will deal with the parents, and the agents, meeting Zordon. It'll go as well as you expect. And don't worry, I'm not rushing the relationship between Hayley and Tommy. They will take it slow for a bit.


	14. Chapter 14

After everyone teleported in – And boy had that been a concept to explain - it took some time for those not used to it to adjust. The parents were wide eyed, and the Light Speed unit was hardly any better. Billy ignored all of this, and walked up to Tommy who opened his arms without hesitation.

“I'm sorry,” Billy said tearfully into Tommy's shoulder, and gripped him tightly.

“Not your fault,” Tommy murmured, fighting back tears, especially when he saw Billy's mom. “It's Sheer's fault, and anyone who helped her.” He patted Billy's back, before he let him go. He slowly approached his godmother cautiously.

He had purposefully avoided her, for a variety of reasons, but now, after all that had happened, he just wanted a hug.

She smiled at him softly, “Come here baby boy,” Candace Cranston opened her arms, and Tommy whimpered before he rushed forward and hugged her. He was careful to not hold her too tightly, but he hugged her all the same. All the while, he was mentally kicking himself in the ass. Because this woman never judged him, and treated him no differently than she treated her own son.

In many ways, she was a better mother to him than his own.

He cut the hug short because he heard the clanking of Alpha's feet, and the giggling of his daughter. Both came into the room to several surprised stares.

“Daddy!” Lizzie shrieked in excitement and ran to him. Tommy walked to meet her, and gently picked her up.

“Did you behave today?” Tommy asked her softly, burying his face in her hair.

“Uh huh,” Lizzie leaned away, and took Tommy's face in her tiny hands. “You sad, daddy?” She asked, face wrinkled in concern. Hayley covered her mouth to keep from crying out, and Tommy blinked back tears.

“I'm better now,” Tommy murmured, and hesitated. He glanced at Candace, “There's someone that I want you to meet, Lizzie.” His daughter seemed curious. Tommy gestured, “This is my Godmother, Candace Cranston.” Candace waved and smiled. “Aunt Candace, this is my daughter Elizabeth.”

“Hi!” There were many smiles at her enthusiasm, but there were more curious stares at Tommy. He ignored them.

“Can I hold her?” Candace asked politely. Lizzie took the choice out Tommy's hands, leaning towards Candace eagerly. Tommy handed her over, smiling at the scene taking place. As she bounced Lizzie, Candace gave him a look that said that there were definitely going to talk about this. Tommy just nodded.

“How mad is he, Alpha?” Jason asked the Automaton, who was being unusually quiet. The other Rangers turned to look at Alpha, waiting for the answer.

“I'm not sure, he's been quiet since I told him that you would be bringing your parents,” Alpha looked around and shook his head, eyes wobbling at the motion. “I don't understand how you all are still alive.”

“Believe me, I'm just as confused as you are.” Tommy sighed. “We should have dropped dead after our secret was revealed.”

There was a flash of blue fire above them, that formed into a ball. The Rangers shielded those without powers, but they needn't have worried.

 _"No harm will come to them,"_ A strong, booming voice spoke from the ball of fire.

None of the Rangers moved, glaring at the fireball. Alpha, strangely, was blinking at the fireball.

_"Very well. Just know that I am only here to tell you that you owe me a debt."_

“My lord -” Alpha began but was cut off.

 _"Not a word from you, Automaton,_ " The fireball sneered at Alpha. " _They are indebted to me for my interference."_ To the rangers, it said, " _Ranger Green is correct, you all should have been killed when you revealed yourselves to your peers."_

“Who are you?!” Jason spat at the fireball.

_"Someone who will collect on my debt when I feel so inclined. Be warned, that I will not be denied, or everyone in this room will suffer."_

The ball faded into nothing before anyone could respond.

“What the hell was that?!” Jason turned his ire towards Alpha, but it was Tommy who spoke.

“That was Ninjor, right?” He asked Alpha grimly. “The one who made our coins?”

“He's made all Ranger coins,” Alpha corrected, sounding shaken, and not bothering to question how Tommy knew about Ninjor. “In this Universe, and in others. If he interfered on your behalf, you are tied to him until he releases you from your debt. I'm sorry Rangers, but when he comes to collect, you will have to do what he says.”

“Joy,” Tommy muttered, turning to look at Jason who was giving a questioning look, “Rita has a lot of knowledge on the subject.” Jason just nodded at that, and didn't ask for anymore details.

“Then we'll deal with that when it comes up.” Jason looked at the adults around them and sighed, “Come on, there's more that you need to see.”

 

* * *

 

 

Baboo quietly ate the human establishment, chewing softly. It wasn't too terrible he supposed, but he had definitely had better.

“Can you believe it? Jason Scott was one of those heroes that saved the Town!” He heard from his left. He didn't turn to the noise, but he did listen in. “Who would have thought that Sam's boy had it in him!”

“Yeah him and the rest of the town fuck ups,” Another voice grumbled. “Who gave those kids permission to do that? They deserve a swift kick up the ass.”

“Oh shut up you,” The first voice chided. “You're just sour over the fact that you couldn't file a claim for your window.”

“It broke during the attack!”

“Its been broken for the last year. I know that, and so did the insurance people – they're not stupid you know.”

They continued to bicker over inconsequential things, and Baboo resisted the urge to torture them for more information.

“It still ain't right,” The second voice grumbled. “Kids ain't got no business holding that kind of power.”

“At least they stepped up to do something, and they stopped those things from hurting the other kids. Cut em some slack.”

The second voice just grumbled, but conceded the point. Baboo had finished his meal, and paid for it with the money he had stolen from a traveler. He quietly left the diner, and made his way back to the vehicle he had also stolen off of the traveler. He disengaged his image inducer when he felt it start to falter. Such primitive technology, he sneered in his mind as he drove. He had used something like this as a child on his planet, it was easy to use this ancient thing.

So far, his reconnaissance had turned up nothing of import, but he was patient. He could wait for the Rangers to come out into the public. It was his preferred method and he was glad that he was sent alone instead of with his partner. Squat was an effective demolitions expert, but he had no subtlety or penchant for follow up patrols. He bombed the target, and did a cursory glance before declaring the day won.

That attitude had come back to haunt them enough times in the past, and the only reason that Squat kept his life was because of his effectiveness in pure destruction. Of course, Baboo and the others had to clean up the mess in response.

As he drove away, he decided to count his lucky stars that he had woken up first. Squat would have just ruined everything.

 

* * *

 

 

Zordon was not in the mood to deal with those he considered children. But, he was being wonderfully calm in the face of one angry parent.

“They are young, yes, but I did not do this to them,” He said irritably to the one called June, Trini's mother. “Destiny decided this for them – and they have done remarkably well.”

“They're children!”

“Could you lower your voice? You're scaring the actual child in the room.” Tommy said flatly, leveling the older woman with a glare. Lizzie had flinched, and buried her face in Candace's shoulder at the noise. “I mean it,” He spat when she opened her mouth to retort. “You're scaring my daughter.” His eyes glowed green for a moment before he calmed down, having felt Trini's fear spike.

“These powers aren't going to go away,” Kim added then, taking Trini's hand in hers. Jason took the other, and the rest of the Rangers fell into step to support them.

“We're stuck with them, until we fall in combat – unless there's a way to give them up?” Jason asked Zordon that last part. His predecessor looked thoughtful.

“The Sword of Light was said to have been the only way to Transfer a Rangers powers to another. Unfortunately, the Sword is on the other side of the Universe, well guarded against even the likes of Master Vile and the Machine Empire.” Tommy was the only one who truly understood the significance of those names, but the others were hardly stupid. They knew that those names brought trouble just by the solemn tone in which they were said.

“So we can't get it?” Zack asked this time, keeping an eye on June who had once looked hopeful, and now looked sour.

“Even if this ship was still capable of flight, you would die in the attempt to get it.” Zordon told them seriously.

“So we're better off just staying here and fighting aliens.” Tommy said in a obvious tone of voice. “Jason, if you allow it, we should work with them.” He jerked his chin towards the Lightspeed Unit. “This is their planet too, and we have no Military training. We might need it.”

Of course, the parents had to protest at that.

“How are you going to stop us?” Tommy demanded angrily. “We have super powers – you don't! And just in case you didn't know, I'm eighteen. Even if you were my parents, I'm recognized as an adult. You can't stop me.”

“I'm doing this.” Kim nodded firmly. “I have a lot to make up for.” Her parents were unhappy with that, but they remained silent, having taken notice of the support their daughter had. It was more than she had previously. They did not like the circumstances, but the fire they had thought to be lost had returned to Kimberly. They would swallow their protests for now.

“So am I,” Trini glared at her mom. “You took everything else from me, you won't have this.”

“Trinidad -” June began angrily only to be cut off.

“No!” Trini growled. “You won't take this from me.” She repeated with angry tears in her eyes. Damon, Trini's dad, placed a hand on his wife's shoulder.

“Leave it,” June scowled at him. “You're not going to win this one.” He gave Trini a small smile. “I support you, Mija.” Trini nodded at him and avoided his gaze. That was the most affectionate he had been in awhile. She had been getting used to his disappointment in her.

The look on June's face made it clear that this conversation was not over.

“I'm sorry mama, but I'm not going to abandon my friends.” Billy said quietly to his mother. “I love them too much to do that.”

Candace swallowed thickly at that, “I still want to talk about this later.” Lizzie cuddled into her, noticing her distress. Candace was grateful for that, as it took her mind out of a dark place.

“Okay,” Billy nodded at her.

“Where's your mom?” Tommy asked Zack softly.

“In the Med bay, sleeping. Alpha said he would see if he could help her.” Zack said back in the same tone. Tommy gripped his shoulder in support. They both watched as Sam Scott walked up to Jason.

“Do you want to do this?” He asked Jason flatly.

“Yes.”

“Will you be safe?”

“As I can be.”

Sam stared at his son before pulling him into a hug, “Just be careful, that's all I ask.” Beverly Scott joined in on the hug after a moment. Tommy looked away, and squashed down any jealousy that started to rise to the surface. He noticed that Zack did the same, and both waved away any concern that the others sent their way.

“I will be,” Jason said gruffly to his father, letting him go. He then turned to stare at Captain Mitchell. “If - When – We agree to this, you don't touch our families, ever.”

“I'm not Melanie Sheer, I won't go after your families” The Captain retorted lightly. “But I will endeavor to prove that my word is worth something.”

“Ranger Green – Tommy,” Zordon corrected when Tommy gave him a glare. “Against my better judgment, I suggest you give the good Captain the Lancer Set, Mark V.”

Tommy raised his eyebrows, “Seriously?” He asked incredulously. “You would give them that kind of power?”

“I did say it was against my better judgment,” Zordon grumbled. “But Lord Ninjor was clear – they are allowed to possess weapons that could subdue you. He called it a sign of good faith.”

Good faith my ass, those things could kill us, Tommy thought grumpily to himself, “Fine.” He said aloud. He made a show of closing his eyes and holding out his arms.

_Tor, give me one of the V-Lancers please._

_As you wish, Tommy._

A long silver case appeared in his arms in a swirl of light. He calmly placed it on the ground, and opened it. There was a short staff in it, with a single edged blade on one end that was gold. The actual staff ran through a V like structure and ended with a coined shaped pommel. Overall it was at least three feet long.

He took it out of the case and walked towards Carter, “This is a Mark V Lancer, or V-Lancer if you feel inclined to call it that,” He gestured to the blade. “This will cut through damn near anything on this planet, and could probably pierce our armor.” He gripped the very end, and pulled it back until it unlatched from the inside lock. He twisted it down until it was perpendicular to the rest of the staff. A trigger appeared after the action.

“It doubles as a blaster as well. You grip it here,” He grabbed at the space between the two points of the V. “And when you're ready, you take your shot.” He slipped the trigger back into the staff and reset the handle back to its starting position. “The Range on it is...” He paused. “Alpha, what is 451 Eltarian Lengths in Earth Miles?”

Alpha cocked his head, “If my math is right, it is over 7,697 Miles.”

“That's farther than the current world record for a sniper shot.” Carter Grayson said flatly. “Why would you give that to me?”

“Oh believe me, a part of me does not want to do this, for a variety of reasons. But, if you are going to trust us, we have to trust you with something. As the new Master at Arms, I will help you get a handle for this weapon, and then I will help you train others to be proficient in it. Provided they pass a psych evaluation.”

“That can be done, but all of you will have to take one as well.” Captain Mitchell added. “We'll need to see where your heads are at.”

“Ha,” Tommy snarled sarcastically. “That will be fun for the shrink. Not so much for us.”

“I had to take one after I got busted and was done with Rehab,” Jason admitted. “I'll take another one.”

One by one, the others declared that they would get one as well. When Hayley said she would take one, Tommy sighed through his nose.

“Fine, I'll take one too,” He grumbled. “Just take the damn thing before I change my mind.” He thrust the weapon towards Grayson, ignoring the reproachful look he got from Candace.

“Thank you,” Carter took the V-Lancer. “For trusting me with this.”

“Don't make me regret it,” Tommy retorted immediately, before pausing thoughtfully. “Actually there is a way you can help me. I need an obnoxiously loud and crazy fast motorcycle.”

“Whatever for?” The Female agent from before asked incredulously.

“Well – Sorry, what is your name?”

“Agent Mitchell,” She said tersely, as if expecting judgment.

Tommy glanced at the Captain, then back to her, “Well Agent Mitchell, I need to tell my Grandfather about what's happened to our family. And I can't just teleport on to the Talon Rush Reservation, I have to approach him like a man, and alone at that. Plus, I don't have a car to use, but I can ride a bike better than anyone in town.”

“Are you sure that going alone is wise?” Captain Mitchell asked him then. “We can give you an escort if need be.”

Tommy couldn't help the bitter laugh that escaped his throat, “Then you know nothing about my Grandfather. He despises what he considers weakness, and me showing up with help definitely qualifies. And he doesn't like anyone who isn't Native. If I show up with any of you, he'll have you shot, and there are enough people there who wouldn't mind doing it.”

He shook his head, “No, I have to go by myself.” He hesitated. “I'll try to keep my emotions down so you don't feel it.” He said to the other Rangers.

“Don't worry man,” Zack clapped him on the back since he was closer. “We can take it.” When the others nodded as well, Tommy felt touched. Still, he nodded stiffly, and squeezed Hayley's hand when she grabbed his in silent support.

“You should let us mic you at the very least,” Captain Mitchell continued to press. Tommy opened his mouth, before a thought came to him.

“Alpha, are the Neuro-Lenses still operational?”

“They remain undamaged, and if I rework it, it will work for your physiology.”

“Then do it, all of you can watch what I do.” Here he smirked at the Captain. “I still need a ride.”

“I'll see what I can do.”


	15. Chapter 15

Tommy gunned it down the main road of the Reservation, waving to some of the kids that saw him, especially those that he babysat once or twice. They tried following with excited shrieks, but obviously couldn't keep up. He also made a mental note to double back to the house that had a sign, that said that they were selling puppies. He was going to try and get one for Lizzie when this was all over.

The bike isn't as loud as I wanted, He thought to himself. Out loud, he said “Can you guys see what I'm seeing?” He blinked to help the contacts adjust.

“Yeah,” He heard in his ear from Jason. “You're giving the adults a heart attack with how fast you're going.” He sounded amused as Tommy grinned.

“The only way to go is fast in this thing.” And damn was it gloriously fast. “Lighten up Captain, I won't crash.”

“I hope not, that vehicle is not cheap.” Captain Mitchell said dryly.

“I know,” Tommy grinned and went faster. “But I'm not gonna crash.” He zoomed past some more cheering kids who chased after him, until their parents came, and got them. His grandfathers house came into view, and he slowed down a bit, before he jerked the bike to the left and engaged the break.

Gravel and dust scattered at his sudden stop. He sighed, before engaging the kickstand, and looking towards the house. His grandfather was sat in his chair on the front porch. Had he truly been alone, Tommy wouldn't need the Blade Blaster at his side. Because his grandfather's goons came out of the house one by one, just as Tommy made his way towards it.

Without a word, one of the men pulled out a gun, and shot near Tommy's feet, “Not another step!” Tommy drew his Blaster, and fired off some power bolts at his grandfathers cronies before anyone else could fire. All eight of them were now on the floor, unmoving.

“You need to work on your aim, that last one could have missed, and then where would you be?” He heard from Agent Grayson.

“They're just stunned,” Tommy called out to his wide eyed grandfather, and also for the benefit of those watching. “They'll wake up after an hour or so. And I would toss that burner you got hiding under that blanket, old man.” Tommy didn't move until his grandfather did as he said, walking alongside his grandfathers truck, and towards the porch. He even holstered his Blaster.

“I see you've taken a page out of the Oppressors guide book, haven't you boy?” Samuel Trueheart spat at his approaching grandson. “Showing up here unannounced, as if you own the place, shooting my people down -”

“They're my people too -”

“No they are not!” His grandfather roared with indignation, standing from his seat. He looked utterly offended at what Tommy just said. “Your people are those dying sister fuckers in the Pacific! These could have been your people had your mother not met your bastard father!”

Tommy's right hand glowed green as he slammed it onto the hood of his grandfathers car. The hood caved in, and the engine block dropped out to the ground. Back in the ship, the other Rangers watched in awe as their hands glowed as well.

“Damn,” Zack muttered, watching his hand light up from within, with purple tendrils fading into black.

“Now that is something that I haven't seen in along time,” Alpha remarked, sharing a look with Zordon. The former Ranger looked wistful as he stared at the Rangers.

“So you do have powers,” Samuel Trueheart, muttered to himself, blood leaving his face. When he had heard about what happened at the school, he thought it was utter bullshit. Now, the proof was in front of him, and he wasn't sure as to how he should proceed.

“Let me make one thing clear, grandpa,” Tommy sneered at the pale older man. “My father was far from perfect – and I have the scars to prove that – but he was loyal to his wife. Can you say the same? A good chunk of your bastard sons are on this porch.” Tommy gestured to them, “The rest are scattered across the Rez, and even outside of it. So with that being said, never speak about my father, and his people, in that way ever again.”

“Is that a threat?!” Sam snarled at his grandson.

“Yes, and I will follow through on it because honestly, who is going to miss you?” Tommy shook his head as the glow receded from his hand. “I didn't come here to fight, I came here to tell you that my mother and sister are alright. You can call off any search parties you put out.”

“Where are they?” His grandfather demanded.

“Being looked after – that's all you need to know,” Tommy said dismissively. “I'll bring them back when they're better.”

“You will bring them back now -”

“I don't take orders from a bastard like you!” Tommy snarled. “And I pity those that do.”

“Calm down Tommy,” He heard Hayley murmur in his ear. “I know you hate him, but he takes joy in pissing you off. Don't feed his ego.” Tommy took a deep breath, and noticed that his grandfather was watching him in interest.

“You know what, I think I'll just let them stay with me,” Tommy said calmly in response. “And one day we'll come back to bury you when you finally drop dead.” He started walking away.

“Don't you turn your back on me.” When Tommy continued on, Samuel went for one of the guns.

BANG!

Tommy drew his Blaster and aimed for one of the one who shot. Tommy blinked, “Annie?” He asked incredulously, lowering the Blaster.

“Hey kiddo,” Anna Blackwater smiled softly, “Hows Lizzie?” She asked, aiming her shot gun in the direction of Samuel Trueheart this time instead of skyward.

“Girl, you better -”

Anna cocked the gun and shot at the house this time, “One more word out of you, and that will be the last word you ever say.”

“Lizzie's great,” Tommy said lightly, sparing his grandfather a glance. The old man looked angry as all hell, but his lips were pursed tightly into a thin line. “She misses you.”

“And I miss the little Rugrat, when are you bringing her back here?”

“You know that I'm not welcomed here,” He gave his grandfather a cold look. “Not with him and his men running things around here.”

“Oh, you won't have to worry about him for long,” She said cryptically. “Bring your daughter back here in a couple of days. Bring your super powered friends too, especially Hayley, I miss my little Land Ariel.”

Hayley blushed whilst watching in the ship while Zack grinned, “I knew I wasn't the only one who thought that.” He wagged his eyebrows at her. She scowled but didn't comment, turning back to watch how things played out.

“She's not little anymore.” Tommy commented.

“Well I wouldn't know, she hasn't been back in awhile,” Anna raised a dark eyebrow at him.

“I'll bring her back,” Tommy nodded at her.

“Good, I'll make my dad's beef stew for the occasion. Run along now, and go see Mary down on the end there, she inherited a litter recently.”

Tommy nodded at the clear dismissal, “I'll see you in a few.” He gave his grandfather one last glare, and made his way towards the bike.

“As long as I live and breath you will never be welcome here!”

Tommy turned and snapped off a shot from his Blaster. He holstered it as his grandfather crumpled to the floor.

“I had him, you know.”

“I know,” Tommy told Anna, getting onto the bike. “But a gunshot is too quick and too good for him.”

True,” Anna nodded as he started the bike up. “Don't be afraid to come back here Tommy, you're always welcome. Despite what that old ass says, you are a son of Talon Rush, and she never turns away one of her children.”

Tommy swallowed thickly, feeling a little emotional at her words, “I'll come back, and I won't be alone.” He took off before she could say anything.

Anna watched him go with a fond smile on her face. She gave the signal to her compatriots for them to move in. This wasn't in the plan, but hey, who was she to complain? Tommy's arrival, and handling of the situation was something that they were going to take advantage of. For too long, Samuel Trueheart had done nothing but rant and rave, while doing nothing about the injustices he saw. Now, it was the time for action, and the new leadership would takeover.

“Thanks kiddo, we'll owe you one till the end of time,” Anna smiled again, and made her way to the Trueheart house.

 

* * *

 

 

Tommy smiled softly as he watched Lizzie hug her new puppy, “Careful baby,” He called out when the puppy whimpered as she squeezed too tight. “She's still too little. You have to be gentle.”

“Gentle,” Lizzie cooed at the puppy, softly petting her head. The puppy settled at that. “I sorry,” Lizzie bit her lip and looked near tears.

“You just have to be gentle sweetheart,” Hayley knelt next to her goddaughter, petting the Black Lab softly. “She's small, smaller than you, but she'll be big enough to do more one day. Just be patient, okay?”

“Kay,” Lizzie sniffed, blinking away any tears that started to form in her eyes.

“What should we call her, hmm?” Tommy knelt as well, shooting Zack a look when he opened his mouth. “Its your choice baby.” He ruffled Lizzie's hair affectionately, and smiled.

“Um,” Lizzie murmured, frowning down at the puppy. She suddenly brightened, “Neah!” She declared with a grin.

“Okay,” Tommy said quietly, heart freezing in his chest while he desperately tried to close the bond between him and his teammates. “Neah it is. Hey, Lizzie, can you go to your play room, the grown ups need to talk.” The other Rangers, besides Hayley, looked at him in concern. The other adults seemed confused, but waited until the young girl left to ask any questions.

“I take Neah?”

“Yeah, of course, but don't be too rough with her,” He reminded her gently, trying not to cry. His daughter didn't notice, transfixed by the puppy she held.

“I'll go with her,” Hayley whispered, watching Tommy sadly. She kissed his cheek, and quietly lead Lizzie out of the room.

Alpha slowly approached Tommy, feet quietly clanking against the floor, “Who, or what, is a Neah?” He asked as the silence stretched on.

“She uh, was my cousin, on my moms side. Her name was Neah Blackwater, Annie is her older sister.” Tommy said thickly, trying to stay calm, and referencing the woman from earlier. “She used to help me with Lizzie cause she was a mom herself.”

“What happened to her?” Zack asked gently, catching on to the past tense.

“Some frat boys from the next town over rode into the Grove last year,” Tommy began softly after a moment of silence. “They were looking for more fun to have since they got bored. They had been drinking hard, and they were driving all over the damn place.”

“I remember that,” Sam Scott spoke up, frowning. “They ended up -” His eyes widened suddenly. “Oh God, I am so sorry.” The adults, besides Trini's parents and the Lightspeed Unit, also understood the implications. The Rangers tried to rack to their brains to remember and one by one they did, except Trini.

“They ended up crashing into an oncoming car,” Tommy finished what Mr. Scott had started since not everyone knew. His eyes started to glow green, and they were wet with tears. “My cousin and her husband were in that car. They didn't survive the crash.”

He closed his eyes and shook his head, ignoring the pitying looks he got, “I was so mad when that happened, and I watched what happened afterward a little too obsessively. There were four Frat boys in that car. Two of the bastards in that car died in the hospital days after they were admitted – they wanted to be career Politicians, their parents said.”

“One is paralyzed from the neck down and he has to eat through a tube – he wanted to play Pro Football, for the Austin Vipers, his favorite team his mother wailed on and on about in the press.”

His voice had steadily grown colder as he described what happened, “And the last? He was thrown from the car, and 'miraculously' survived with a broken shoulder and a few cuts to the face. Since he was the only one to survive relatively unscathed, he had to answer for happened. And did he answer for it? No, all my family got were half-assed apologies, and offers for a financial settlement. He didn't get any significant jail time either, because the judge thought his injuries were punishment enough. The Judge didn't want to ruin his future, and it helped that he didn't drive the car.”

He half snarled and sobbed at that. God that had been so infuriating to witness at the time. Tommy barely contained himself from jumping over the barriers, and strangling the fucker with his bare hands. The months that followed afterward were just unbearable.

“My grandfather refused the offers, the only thing I agreed with him on wholeheartedly. But then he didn't do anything after that, it was if his granddaughters life meant nothing to him. Its easy to expect outsiders to not give a damn about Native People, but my own grandfather, a man who had been so pro-native to the point of being willingly ignorant to all the faults in our culture, just left his granddaughters death unavenged.”

“And what did you do?” Agent Grayson asked, no judgment in his voice, just a need to get the facts.

“I followed him,” Tommy admitted without hesitation. “I studied his routine, and watched him for weeks. I wanted to make him suffer, just like my family had.”

“And did you?”

“No, I couldn't,” Tommy said bitterly. “When push came to shove I couldn't go through with it, I had too much to lose. Heh, didn't matter anyway, it still came back to haunt me.”

He paused and looked up towards the ceiling with a regretful look, “His younger brother Terrance - Though he goes by Smitty - had followed me back to town. I used to – I used to fight for money. And Smitty challenged me one day. He wasn't good, at all, but he was stubborn, and he wouldn't stop. So I had to make him stop by beating him down.”

“He's in a coma now.” He closed his eyes to avoid the judgmental stares he was sure that the others were giving him. “And when I went to turn myself in – because I know right from wrong – not one of the cops there would arrest me. I even confessed to his family, and they didn't press any charges.”

“How'd you swing that?” Zack asked incredulously, earning a slap from Trini. “No seriously, you're Ethnic, lighter than Billy but still, they should have taken you in with no problem. Maybe even roughed you up a bit.”

“I don't know man, I was so confused at the time when nothing happened. Until my fight sponsor, Gregory Mercer, told me that he had taken care of it....and that I owed him a few favors. So on top of everything I had to do for that man already, I had to do more to pay off the debt I had suddenly gained.”

“I worked security when he told me too, threw a fight when he asked, and just kept my mouth shut about it all. I make payments to Smitty's bills so his parents don't have to take the load, you know?”

“You said your sponsor was Gregory Mercer.” Captain Mitchell asked flatly, making Tommy turn to him.

“Yeah, why?” He asked back with a frown.

“He was one of the main contributors of Apex, both in terms of money and tech.”

“So that explains how they found out where I lived.” Tommy scoffed disbelievingly. “They probably already knew about me through him. Which means they knew about everyone else besides Hayley thanks to her parents already working for them. Which also explains why Bulk, Skull, and the rest of those idiots had the serum.” It all made a little bit of sense now.

Tommy shook his head suddenly, and stared intently at the Lightspeed Unit, “So what happens to me now?”

“What do you mean?” Agent Mitchell asked with a frown.

“I just admitted to stalking someone with the intent to harm them. I even admitted to assaulting someone so badly that they are now in a coma. Apex knew about all of this presumably, and they did nothing. You said you weren't like Apex, so what are you going to do about it?”

“No!” Billy blurted out, moving to stand in front of Tommy protectively. “You're not taking him!” He spread his arms wide.

“Billy, go stand next to your mom,” Tommy told him gently, eyes widening in disbelief when the rest of the Rangers moved to stand with Billy. “What the hell are you guys doing?!” He got to his feet. “They haven't even said anything yet.”

“They don't need to – they're not taking you.” Trini growled, causing Tommy to stare at the back of her head intently.

“You don't even like me,” He said flatly. “I frighten you whenever I use my powers.”

“That's Rita's fault, not yours,” She said softly, turning her head to look at him. “I mean it, I don't blame you for what she did.”

Try as he might to find it, he couldn't spot the lie in what she said. She well, and truly meant every word. Their connection, which had been reopened during this time, showed even more proof that she meant it.

“The point is, you already have our cooperation – that has to be enough,” Jason said firmly, head whipping back to Tommy, and glaring at him to keep quiet.

Captain Mitchell spoke up then, “It is, but we will need to know about anything else that you all have done. There will be no surprises and secrets between us. If we are truly going to work together, then we lay it all on the table.”

“Easier said than done,” Zack muttered under breath, before sharing a look with the Rangers. Trini gave her mom a glare when she looked ready to speak, before nodding her assent at the terms.

“I'll do it,” She said.

“Same,” Tommy added, not really looking at anyone. If Trini, someone who opened up very little to anyone she didn't trust, suddenly wanted to give it a shot, then he would too. The others followed suit, with varying degrees of reluctance.

“And I will be honest with all of you. My name is Carter, by the way,” Agent Grayson nodded at them. He looked at his partner who hesitated.

“I can do that,” Agent Mitchell nodded. “Call me Dana.”

“My name is William, though considering that there already is another William here,” He smiled at Billy. “You may call me Mitchell or Captain, whichever you prefer.”

There was a somewhat comfortable silence that followed.

“So, do we get badges or uniforms? Because I can rock a suit with the best of them.”

There were several snorts at what Zack said, but there was more eye-rolling than anything.

“And who the hell would see you in a suit? If there was an attack, we would have to go out there fully morphed, and ready to go.”

There was a loud Klaxon at Tommy's words, causing him to blink, “Oh hell, I didn't mean to jinx it.” He said as Alpha ran to the consul and activating the Viewing Screens. They flickered in and out, but the picture was clear enough for them to see what was happening.

“There's a fire on 5th and Elwood, it seems to have been caused by a gas leak.” Alpha got out just as Hayley came running back in. She took one look at the Screens, and went to stand with Tommy.

“Well let's go,” Zack said before turning to address the Agents. “You wanna come with?” The Agents turned to their boss.

“Go,” The word barely left the Captain's mouth, before both Dana and Carter moved to take point with the Rangers.

“We'll be back as soon as we can.” Jason said, starting to Morph. The others followed suit, and Alpha teleported them all out to the current situation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think. The next chapter will be the last.


End file.
